


The Yule Ball

by clarkesjade



Category: Little Mix (Band), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Angst, Christmas, Established Relationship, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Gryffindor, Gryffindor Jeon Jungkook, Gryffindor Kim Seokjin | Jin, Horny Teenagers, Hufflepuff Jung Hoseok | J-Hope, Hufflepuff Kim Taehyung | V, Hufflepuff Perrie Edwards, Humor, It's mostly fluffy anyway, Light-Hearted, Love Confessions, M/M, Male-Female Friendship, Mentions of Anxiety, Miscommunication, Mutual Pining, Nothing serious or edgy, Pining, Quidditch, Ravenclaw Jade Thirlwall, Ravenclaw Kim Namjoon | RM, Romance, Slytherin Jesy Nelson, Slytherin Min Yoongi | Suga, Slytherin Park Jimin (BTS), Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-11 10:33:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,696
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28349937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/clarkesjade/pseuds/clarkesjade
Summary: Four oneshots and a culminative finale featuring some sweet, emotionally repressed and horny Hogwarts students trying, or not trying, to get to the Yule Ball.
Relationships: Jeon Jungkook/Kim Taehyung | V, Kim Namjoon | RM/Jade Thirlwall, Min Yoongi | Suga/Park Jimin, Perrie Edwards/Leigh-Anne Pinnock
Comments: 6
Kudos: 14





	1. The Snitch

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dustingoffstars](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dustingoffstars/gifts).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Click me for a shitty reference image on everyone's house, year, and most importantly, hair color](https://imgur.com/a/cnDVgFB)

*Four weeks until the Yule Ball*

Leigh-Anne Pinnock loved Quidditch.

The rush of the wind, the cheers in the crowd, the grin whenever a ding announced a goal for Gryffindor had been scored, she lived for it.

One problem.

The Hufflepuff seeker was good. Really good.

She wasn’t as fast as Leigh-Anne, nor did she have a better eye, but she knew some dirty tricks and secret moves. Her name was Perrie Edwards, and she was annoyingly formidable.

Leigh didn’t train extra hard this season to lose. And she enjoyed competition. They’d wiped the floor with Ravenclaw last game, it had been embarrassingly easy. Still, their captain had kept training as grueling as ever, preparing for the Hufflepuffs. The Hufflepuff captain, Jung Hoseok, was a good guy, a good captain, from what Leigh had witnessed. Their team had good chasers, mediocre beaters, and a solid keeper. And obviously an excellent seeker.

That excellent seeker was flying close to the ground at the moment, Leigh noticed. She herself thought she’d spotted the snitch near the low hanging clouds, but the glint might’ve been the sun. Either way, Leigh knew higher ground was a better tactic. It enabled an eagle’s eye, and the potential for some other dirty tricks.

Leigh surveyed the rest of the game. One of the Hufflepuff chasers, the captain, had been on a roll this game, getting a goal near every attempt.

“Jin!” Leigh shouted, spotting her beater teammate flying near her.

“You need to knock Hoseok off!” Leigh called.

“What do you think I’ve been trying to do?” Jin shouted back. “Just find that snitch before they get too ahead.”

They both nodded at each other, and Leigh took off.

“Another ten points to Hufflepuff!” The announcer shouted gleefully.

Leigh scowled gripping her broomstick so tight the wood might snap. She glanced around, spotting another teammate who was hanging back by the goalposts, supporting their keeper.

“Seen anything?”

“Thought I saw it in the clouds,” Jeon Jungkook, one of the Gryffindor chasers responded, his voice panicky. “We’re gonna lose if we don’t get that snitch soon.”

“I’ll get it,” Leigh said firmly. “I promise.”

Jungkook was probably one of their strengths as a team. He knew the most about Quidditch without a doubt considering who he came from, and he was always vocal about longer training hours, to the playful annoyance of the team. Most notably Jin, who teased him a lot during practice for overdoing it. Leigh didn’t mind, though, she was always open to extra training with Jungkook. He seemed to enjoy the team interplay the most.

A flash of gold.

Leigh shot up towards the clouds, certain that wasn’t the sun’s rays this time.

Perrie was trailing behind her.

She heard the ding of another ten points to Hufflepuff.

They’d tie now. If Leigh got the snitch, they’d tie or lose.

Leigh hated ties. Obviously losing was worse, but there was something so bland about ties, so boring and anti-climactic.

She had minutes, maybe just moments to get the snitch before the Hufflepuffs scored again, sealing their fate.

“There you are,” Leigh whispered to herself, seeing the unmistakable, fluttering wings of the golden snitch flitting through the fog. She pressed her chest to her broom handle, speeding up.

Perrie was following her, Leigh could see the blonde girl in the corner of her eye.

Leigh began swerving, trying to distract Perrie’s vision. Her arm was outreached, she could see the metallic pattern on the snitch.

Leigh’s gloved fingers wrapped around the ball.

Then something hard knocked into her, and she lost grip.

“Edwards!” Leigh screamed, nearly falling off her own broom. The snitch was still in her eyesight, and Leigh leaped forward, grasping the snitch tightly.

She toppled over, almost falling off her broom if her thighs weren’t gripping so tightly. She somersaulted around, balancing up again, and a loud horn sounded.

The game was over.

Leigh flew down, a victorious grin on her face as she descended.

Then she saw both Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs cheering wildly, and her smile sank.

“What’s happening?” Leigh asked Jin, who she’d landed closest to.

Jin merely glowered at the Hufflepuffs, who had all also landed, with the same victorious smiles etched on their faces.

“Good game,” their captain, Hoseok called out to the Gryffindors, with a sympathetic face.

“No!” Leigh yelled back. “I caught the snitch!”

Hoseok winced. “We scored before you grabbed it.”

Jungkook and Perrie landed, taking each of their team’s side.

“She knocked me over,” Leigh said, pointing at Perrie. “I had it, and she knocked me over.”

Hoseok looked suspicious, and glanced at Perrie for an explanation. “Is that true?”

Perrie narrowed her eyes. “I knocked her, but that was before she got the snitch. She grabbed it after you scored, Captain.”

“You liar!”

“What’s all this!” A cold voice shouted, silencing them all. Madame Hooch had descended from the stands, approaching both teams with a stern look on her face.

“There seems to be…a disagreement, Madame Hooch,” Hoseok answered calmly.

Madame Hooch nodded, though she looked disappointed. “I see. I haven’t called the game yet, so you both have time to explain. Captain Hoseok, you first.”

“It’s Edwards’s story, Ma’am.”

Perrie stepped forward. “I was flying behind Pinnock the last five minutes. She didn’t catch the snitch until after we scored.”

“And Pinnock?”

“I caught the snitch,” Leigh said quickly, wiping sweat from her brow. “I caught it, and she purposefully bumped into me to make me lose grip. But I caught it again, after they scored.”

“You fumbled it?” Madame Hooch said curtly.

“No!” Leigh insisted. “I _grabbed_ it, I held it in my hand.”

Jungkook stepped up next to Leigh. “Leigh-Anne doesn’t lie, Madame Hooch, she’s competitive but she doesn’t lie.

Leigh didn’t know how truthful that was, but this was Quidditch, and they had to try anything to win this game.

Madame Hooch faced Perrie again. “Don’t make me force feed you Veritaserum, Edwards.”

“I’m not lying!” Perrie protested. “Our captain got that point within the game!”

Leigh bit her lip nervously. They had to win, they _had_ to win.

Madame Hooch sighed, and Leigh’s gut twisted.

“You played well, Gryffindor,” Madame Hooch said. “But Pinnock, if you were indeed gripping it, one nudge wouldn’t have made you lose it. The point stands. Hufflepuff wins.”

Leigh groaned, her knees sinking into the dirt ground.

Madame Hooch announced the dreadful win to the crowds, and Leigh heard the annoying cheers and devasted boos of disappointment.

“This is so unfair,” Jin muttered. “You weren’t lying, right?”

“I wasn’t, Jin, I swear I held that stupid ball in my fist,” Leigh said, her voice cracking.

“We have to complain,” Jungkook said quickly, his eyes teary. “We can ask for a tie?”

Jin scoffed. “Be my guest, and ask Madame Hooch yourself.”

Jungkook stepped back. “I’m sorry, guys.”

“For what?” Leigh demanded.

“I sucked today. We lost because of me,” Jungkook sighed. “I kept missing goals; I should’ve been better.”

“It wasn’t you, you played normally,” Jin muttered. “It was Jung Hoseok, that cheeky bastard is just better.”

“That doesn’t make me feel better.”

“Well, I wasn’t trying to uplift you, now was I?” Jin said simply. “Look, we have one more game in spring with Slytherin, Leigh-Anne you better catch that snitch faster.”

Leigh glowered at Jin in mutual frustration. “Their seeker is good.”

“Then be better. We’ll train harder, longer hours. School isn’t important.”

“Good,” Jungkook said, chiming in agreement. “We should’ve been training longer anyway.”

Leigh tuned out her teammates, staring at the celebrating Hufflepuff team. Perrie pulled off her helmet, tossing her blonde hair behind her shoulder. She looked over her shoulder and caught Leigh’s eye.

Then she smirked.

Leigh threw her broom down. “What was that, Edwards!”

“A consolatory smile!” Perrie yelled back.

“You know bloody well—”

“Hey!” Hoseok shouted, stepping between them. “Enough! Perrie, let’s head back to the lockers, come on.”

“Yeah, control your seeker, maybe she’d catch the snitch next time,” Leigh said under her breath.

“You bitch,” Perrie snarled, pushing past her captain to get to Leigh.

Leigh pulled out her wand.

“Pinnock! Edwards!”

Madame Hooch had arrived again, her voice terrifyingly loud, cracking around the stadium like a whip.

“The game is over!” Madame Hooch bellowed, and even Hoseok cowered as she approached. “What are you two doing?”

“She tried to attack me!” Perrie shrieked.

“They started it!” Jin’s voice shouted from behind Leigh, and Leigh felt a surge of respect for her fellow teammate. The only Gryffindor teammate her age, they’d both started playing the same year, and they’d always had a special Quidditch bond forged in the years they played together.

“Miss Pinnock, _put your wand away_!” Madame Hooch snapped. “Miss Edwards, we both know you have a habit of antagonizing the losing team. I want to see you both in my office, _now_!”

“Madame Hooch, is that really necessary—”

“It is, boy!” Madame Hooch cut off Hoseok’s pleads like a knife. “Now step away before I give you detention too!”

Madame Hooch had a small, cramped office, like a broom cupboard by the Quidditch lockers. Leigh could still hear both euphoric and depressed conversations as students passed by, heading back up the castle.

“What were _either_ of you thinking?”

Leigh looked down at her hands in her lap, feeling small as ever. She and Perrie were seated in two uncomfortably tight chairs, as Madame Hooch sat down opposite them. She stared them both down from her desk, crossing her arms over the table.

“You weren’t thinking,” Madame Hooch continued, her voice short and icy. “At all. I expect some level of respect and civility on the field. My first years behave better than you did today. Does Hufflepuff not value fair play, Miss Edwards?”

“Pinnock was blatantly lying on the field, Madame Hooch!” Perrie cried out. “She tried to steal our victory!”

“Lower your voice, Miss Edwards,” Madame Hooch said coldly. “Miss Pinnock was inquiring about the final score, as is her right. I am taking five points from Hufflepuff for the unnecessary antics and profane language.”

Perrie crossed her arms, glowering at Madame Hooch. The sight brought a small grin to Leigh’s face.

“You are not scot-free here, Miss Pinnock,” Madame Hooch snapped, making Leigh flush. “I admire your passion, but you had the chance to be the better woman. Five points for instigating a fight and drawing your wand.”

“I wasn’t lying,” Leigh muttered.

“That is irrelevant. The game is finished. Now for your detentions…”

“Detention?” Perrie exclaimed, her mouth agape.

“Did I stutter, Miss Edwards? You and Miss Pinnock caused a juvenile scene in front of the school, your fellow students and faculty. You embarrassed not only your teams, but your Houses. You will both spend the afternoon cleaning the stands, no magic.”

“But, Ma’am, we have midterms—”

“Ma’am our party—!”

“Enough! Miss Pinnock, you’re lucky I’m only making you clean the stands. Miss Edwards, you are not deserving of a House party after your behavior. You both have two hours to convince me this is the only detention you need. Now leave my office.”

Leigh jumped to her feet, her teeth gritted, shoving her fists in her pockets.

The Quidditch field was mostly cleared, only a few stragglers still descending the wooden stairs. Two boys stood waiting in the fields, each several meters apart.

“Where’s the captain?” Leigh asked Jin, who seemed just as frustrated as Leigh.

“Jungkook broke down crying, so she’s taking him to Madame Pomfrey’s for a pick-me-up,” Jin muttered as soon as she was in close vicinity.

Leigh glanced to the other boy, the Hufflepuff captain standing strong.

“I’m sorry about all this, Leigh-Anne,” Hoseok said kindly. “Well played, you’re a good seeker and you should be proud today.”

“Thanks,” Leigh called out. Then she turned back to Jin, lowering her voice. “I hate him.”

“Agreed,” Jin muttered. “At least the Slytherins don’t make you feel guilty about fighting with them.”

Perrie arrived on the field soon after Leigh had rushed out, meeting up with her own captain.

“I have detention,” Perrie announced, throwing her hands in the air. “I have to clean the stands the Muggle way.”

“Now?” Hoseok said indignantly. Then he sighed deeply. “Well, good luck!”

“Hoseok!” Perrie cried out, her hands on her hips.

Hoseok chuckled at her reaction. “Look, fair play is the most important part of any sport, more important than winning. Being a good player is always the priority, and my job is to help you be that. So, this’ll be good for you. I’ll save you a butterbeer, how’s that?”

Perrie grumbled something unintelligible in response.

Maybe Hoseok was onto something, Leigh thought, being that kind of captain. Their own captain wasn’t as soft, she pushed them hard, and usually Leigh liked that. But Leigh never had that kind of rapport Perrie had with Hoseok, with her own captain. For the Gryffindors, winning was the priority. 

“I won’t be saving you a butterbeer,” Jin muttered to Leigh, as Hoseok waved goodbye to them all and headed back to the Hufflepuff lockers. “I’ll be using it to drown myself.”

“Don’t worry,” Leigh said gloomily, and gestured at Perrie. “I’ll throw myself off the stands if I have to spend another second with her.”

“Meet back here as Hogwarts ghosts?”

“You got it,” Leigh said, grinning darkly. Then Jin departed too, leaving her with that blonde devil.

For a moment, there was nothing but silence as Leigh stared Perrie out, waiting to see who would break the glare.

Then Perrie sighed. “Might as well.”

Leigh narrowed her eyes. Perrie did the same.

“Ladies first,” Perrie said, gesturing to the stands.

“We are both women.”

“I was gonna say losers first, actually, but that sounded too mean so I switched mid-sentence.”

“And yet you said it anyway,” Leigh said under her breath, reluctantly taking the lead.

There were numerous broom cupboards hidden behind the stands on ever level, containing Muggle objects Leigh had never seen in her life. Bottles with weird, pointed caps, a red bag that contained bandages and other small pointy objects, brooms that could sweep instead of flown on.

“I think we use the…brooms,” Leigh said, disgusted. “If we can even call them that.”

She grabbed a broom and pushed it into Perrie’s hands.

“What—Why me?”

“Don’t you Hufflepuffs like working hard?” Leigh asked in a sickly-sweet voice.

“Don’t you Gryffindors like being the hero?” Perrie snapped back. She grabbed another broom in the closet and tossed it Leigh’s way. “There, we’ll both sweep. That’s fair, isn’t it?”

Leigh caught the broom with her hands moving like lightning, and nodded begrudgingly. “So you do know what ‘fair’ means after all.”

Perrie rolled her eyes.

Two grueling hours later, Leigh made her way to Perrie’s side of the Quidditch stands. They’d divided the stadium in half, each sweeping up their own side. Leigh never realized how much candy her fellow classmates had and just…never cleaned up.

“Still not done?”

Perrie sighed, stretching her back and taken a moment break. “Yes, we get it, you’re faster.”

“Sorry,” Leigh muttered. Her back hurt too, aching from her neck and down her spine, her feet also tired from standing so long. “Madame Hooch is coming back in like, a minute so…”

Perrie let out a whine, looking out at the enclosed stands where the Ravenclaws stood and cheered. “Ugh, and I have this whole area left to do!”

“I’ll help,” Leigh said, gripping the cleaning broom. “Ravenclaws aren’t usually that messy, anyway.”

“Thanks,” Perrie murmured.

The sounds of the broom sweeping with gentle winds passing by was almost soothing. Leigh climbed the stands to the top, sweeping the candy wrappers down for Perrie to collect.

“Sorry I called you a bitch, by the way,” Perrie said abruptly. “Hoseok’s right, fair play is more—”

“No, stop,” Leigh said. “Okay, yeah, don’t insult me, but don’t be too much like Hoseok, I’m begging you. He’s too kind and happy, it’s borderline annoying. I much rather have the fire, the fighting. It’s part of Quidditch, no matter what Madame Hooch says.”

“Yeah,” Perrie said slowly. “I go to Quidditch games with my family and a lot of the players throw tantrums when they lose.”

“Especially the men.”

Perrie grinned. “ _Especially_ the men. And everyone loves it, so I don’t get why we’re being punished for it.”

Leigh laughed. “Probably because I was about to hex you, that might’ve crossed a school guideline.”

Perrie giggled as well. “Everyone on my team thinks it’s weird that I get angry when we lose games. Hoseok gets frustrated too but, he’s so cheerful regardless.”

“He seems like a good captain though.”

“He is,” Perrie said, with a pensive expression on her face. “But you guys are faster, you guys are just better.”

“At the expense of our study time,” Leigh said, sighing. “Being as fast as a snitch means willingly failing a subject.”

Leigh hesitated, a question dancing on her lips. Then she spoke.

“Hey, look, I know the game is over,” Leigh said carefully, watching Perrie perk up with a suspicious expression. “If you did knock me over after I grabbed the snitch, I don’t care, but I’d like to know if you did, just to end this.”

“I didn’t,” Perrie said shortly. “I didn’t see you grab it.”

Leigh looked at her. “I’m gonna ask you one more time.”

And when Madame Hooch arrived to inspect the stadium, two hours on the dot later, she saw the Ravenclaw’s designated area messier than it was before she assigned them to clean it.

“What are you _doing_?” Madame Hooch screeched, shoving both girls apart from each other, both of them scowling at each other.

Leigh was breathing heavily, plucking a candy wrapper out of her hair, while Perrie was shaking her head like a wet dog, trying to get the dust out of her blonde locks.

“She started it,” both girls said immediately, pointing fingers dramatically. 

“I don’t care!” Madame Hooch shouted. “Both of you have supremely disappointed me today! Ten points from both Hufflepuff and Gryffindor. You both can clean up the rest of this now and see me in my office again. Quickly!”

Yet again, a mere two hours later, Leigh found herself pouting in Madame Hooch’s office, right next to Perrie, after sweeping up the rest of the mess they’d created in their brawl.

Madame Hooch sat like a doll made of stone, her fingers tapping her wand rhythmically, staring the two girls out.

“I gave you an easy, quick detention because of your midterms.” Madame Hooch began, her voice scarily quiet. “I’m nice like that. Am I not?”

“Yes, Madame Hooch,” Leigh and Perrie said in unison, staring at the ground.

“So, in light of the Christmas season—”

“It’s November,” Leigh mumbled.

“Hold your tongue, Miss Pinnock,” Madame Hooch snapped. “In light of the Christmas season and the midterms, I will be delaying your detentions until after the Yule Ball. You will both help Filch clean the ballroom, while you are monitored by me and my fellow professors. Understood?”

“So, we can’t go to the ball?” Leigh exclaimed, horrified.

“This is so unfair,” Perrie said.

“Oh, is it now?” Leigh said, turning in her seat to stare at Perrie.

“Will you get over it, you didn’t catch the sn—”

“Enough!” Madame Hooch shouted again. “I will be speaking to your prefects and captains to reign both of you in. If I so much as witness a wrong _look_ between you two in the next few weeks, you will both miss only losing ten points. _Do I make myself clear_?”

“Yes, Madame Hooch,” they both muttered, like small children.

“Out. Now.”

Leigh left the room, still picking candy wrappers out of her curls.

“Looks like you’ll be my date to the Yule Ball, Pinnock,” Perrie said, meeting Leigh outside Madame Hooch’s office.

“Sounds like the worst date of my life,” Leigh said, throwing the candy wrapper at Perrie.

Perrie grabbed the candy wrapper, like a perfect seeker grabbing a snitch, and blew Leigh a kiss.

“Wear something pretty.”


	2. The Song

*Three weeks until the Yule Ball*

Namjoon squinted through his glasses, trying to retain one piece of information from his Muggles Studies book. Why did he even need to learn what electrons were or what they do, they just _are_ , he thought to himself, like magic. He peeked a glance at his girlfriend, staring down at the same book but pages ahead. Her hand tangled itself in her wild blonde hair, fingers twisting into the curls, an adorable habit whenever she tried to focus.

Namjoon strongly believed studying how Jade’s blonde curls functioned was infinitely more fascinating than how particles generated electricity for muggles or whatever it was they did.

Across the study table in the dead-quiet library sat Yoongi and Jesy, clearly only pretending to study. It was truly remarkable, Jesy being a year older yet incapable of explaining the concepts to Yoongi she’d studied intensively only a year ago. Whether or not Jesy was gatekeeping information to piss Yoongi off, if she actually didn’t know the material anymore or if Yoongi wasn’t any better at understanding her explanations, was debatable, but it made for a wildly entertaining yet mutually destructive friendship.

Electrons. Yes.

Namjoon bowed his head again, flipping the page to the periodic table of elements and its uses. Usually, he’d find memorization fun, because Jade always turned it into a competitive game that Namjoon hated failing at, but not a single bizarre word on that page seemed to linger in his brain for more than a second before departing out the back door with a peace sign, escaping his empty mind.

He glanced at her again.

The Yule Ball was inching closer day by day, the early December snow had been especially ominous, and Jade hadn’t uttered a word about going. Namjoon had spent months thinking of the perfect way to ask her. She’d never been the type for cliché, heavily romantic proposals, but she hated minimalism with a passion.

This, of course, made Namjoon’s self-appointed job much harder. As much as he loved studying (to the horror of his fellow Slytherin study-mates) the relief of passing the midterms paled in comparison to the joy he’d feel if he could ask her in the perfect way. He could feel himself smiling at the thought of her smile.

Namjoon bit his lip, trying to settle down and work yet again.

Had she even found the notes?

A few weeks ago, after another study game with her that tired his mind out, he’d woken up to the genius idea of a scavenger hunt of sorts, a treasure hunt with riddles and puzzles she’d have to solve, one by one, before leading to the ultimate prize…something he’d never shown to anyone.

He was blushing just thinking about it.

Only Yoongi knew (because Yoongi was guilty of it too), and that had been a slipup on Namjoon’s part he swore would never happen again.

Songwriting.

He’d always been friends with Jade since their first year, only asking her out on the last school day of fourth year so he could escape her face for three months if she rejected him, but he’d kept his songs a secret from her ever since he started writing them.

To be honest, he wasn’t embarrassed, just…terrified. Yes, it was much better to be terrified, he thought. Those songs stole his blood, sweat and tears in the darkest hours of the night, the lyrics tumbling from the deepest recesses of his mind. He’d always been thankful it was Yoongi he’d shown them too, because Yoongi’s songs had the same atmosphere as well, and while neither of them talked about their themes, they both just started taking care of the other more in invisible ways after reading each other’s lyrics.

He was terrified of Jade looking at him differently. Pity, fear, horror, disgust? He could only begin to imagine her expressions as she read the lyrics. Or maybe she’d think it was pretentious garbage.

The small, sane part of his brain knew Jade would probably lie to protect his feelings if she didn’t like his songs, but his heart still hurt at the thought, his mind incapable of visualizing any positive reaction from her.

Yoongi had encouraged him after Namjoon privately revealed his idea. He did scoff at the scavenger hunt, but he had smiled at the idea of Namjoon showing more people his songs.

Then it became a mission of which song he wanted to show her. It did feel narcissistic, the prize for her being a song he wrote, but Yoongi convinced him yet again. It felt like showing her a different side of him, right before he finally took her to a dance together.

He had chosen a song he’d written last year, after a rendezvous at the Quidditch field at night where they spent hours just talking, letting the wind fill any momentary silences while shoveling down Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans. The sky had been perfectly clear, with the stars twinkling in her eyes, and new inside jokes were created without them realizing it in the moment.

He never showed Yoongi the song. All the metaphors, the inside jokes… it felt too personal, like Yoongi would’ve been peering invasively into their relationship. The song had always belonged to Jade, and Namjoon knew only Jade’s eyes should read it.

The lyrics were imprinted on a piece of parchment along with a ridiculous romantic proclamation he knew Jade would roll her eyes endearingly at, plus some small, colorful firework effects that’d dance around her the moment she opened it. The niche spells in place took hours out of his study time, as well as all the other riddles and puzzles hidden. He hoped to Merlin it would be worth it.

“I’ll be right back,” Jade said suddenly, breaking through Namjoon’s internal monologue. Yoongi and Jesy didn’t even glance up as Jade rose to her feet. “I need another book on Muggle astrophysics, this is unintelligible.”

“Muggle astrophysics?” Namjoon muttered to himself, flipping through the book to see just how far ahead of him she’d gotten.

“She’s right,” Yoongi grumbled, as Jade hurried off to find Madame Pince. “These books are garbage, so dated.”

“It’s literally a history book,” Jesy said to Yoongi, rolling her eyes.

“And? You passed the O.W.L.s and last years midterms so I don’t understand why you still can’t explain it to me when the book fails,” Yoongi snapped back.

“I’m telling you for the fifth bloody time to read the footnotes—”

“Shh!” A stranger’s voice hissed from behind a book case, silencing Yoongi and Jesy’s bickering.

Namjoon could only drum his fingers wildly on the table for so long before he broke out in an urgent whisper.

“It’s been two days and Jade hasn’t said anything.”

Yoongi glanced up, narrowing his eyes at Namjoon. “Yet I specifically recall you saying the whole thing might take at least a week to solve?”

“But she has to have started, I put the note in her book days ago.”

Jesy looked up as well. “Right, is this something that concerns me?”

“No,” Namjoon and Yoongi whispered in sync.

“Then shut up and study,” Jesy mumbled. “Or move.”

“You’re not even reading the right chapter for Charms,” Yoongi said, staring down at her book.

“I know more than you,” Jesy said flatly, like that ended the discussion, but she flipped back to the right page anyway. “Respect your elders.”

Yoongi opened his mouth to respond, before another angry “shh!” cut them off again. It would’ve been funny how often they fought and made up over the course of five seconds if Namjoon hadn’t been in panic mode. They acted more like siblings than Namjoon and his own sister.

“For the love of Merlin,” Namjoon insisted. “Can you think of any reason why she isn’t talking about it?”

“It’s weeks ‘til the Yule Ball,” Yoongi sighed. “Let her breathe. She’ll get to it.”

“You’re asking Jade to the Yule Ball?” Jesy asked, her nose scrunching up in confusion.

Namjoon nodded once.

Jesy blinked. “You don’t see anything weird about that?”

Namjoon shook his head.

Jesy hid a grin. “Right, carry on then.”

Yoongi glanced at Jesy suspiciously, before turning his attention to Namjoon.

“You two have a midterm in two days, maybe she saw it already and she’s putting it on hold.”

“On hold?”

“He made it into a super smart scavenger hunt,” Yoongi explained to Jesy. “These nerds, I swear.”

“Cute,” Jesy snorted. “Jade will probably love it though.”

Namjoon didn’t believe her. He physically couldn’t make himself believe her.

“Give it a week, mate,” Yoongi murmured eventually. “It’ll all be alright.”

Namjoon slumped in his seat, defeated. The longer Jade stayed silent, the more time Namjoon had to reflect on his Yule Ball proposal and how ridiculous and corny and convoluted it was. Even his song felt stupid and childish now.

Then a final “shh!” reached their ears, and Yoongi perked up, his mouth twisted in a snarl, prepared to curse someone out. He turned in his seat, and the source of the talking-police rendered Yoongi speechless.

Park Jimin, another Slytherin in Yoongi’s year, was strolling past with an agitated expression on his face, not even offering Yoongi a glance. He nodded respectfully at Namjoon, though, who nodded politely back.

Yoongi quickly sank down in his chair, but not without staring daggers at Jimin’s back.

Namjoon had top grades in all his subjects yet he couldn’t put his finger on the reason for the animosity between those two. Jimin never spared him a glance while Yoongi spared many glances, none very kind. Whenever Namjoon asked Yoongi about him, Yoongi would shut down the conversation or ease Namjoon into a new topic without Namjoon even realizing it. Yoongi would also go to bed very quickly after any mention. And it was even odder considering how Yoongi and Jimin slept in beds right next to each other.

As Jimin walked away, leaving the library, Yoongi faced Jesy, who looked grave-faced, and the two immediately erupted in hushed words to quiet for Namjoon to hear, which was in itself a pleasant surprise.

Namjoon resorted to placing his hands by either side of the book and forcing his head down. He continued perusing the chapter on Muggle physics, searching for the page on astrophysics, where Jade had left on.

Except he couldn’t find it.

He squinted at the words, wondering if he had been so preoccupied with Jade, he’d forgotten how to process information. He checked the table of contents, then the back for the word registry.

He paused, frozen in time, Yoongi and Jesy oblivious to his comical pose.

He glanced at Jade’s book, a bookmark sticking out. He carefully opened the book up to the marked page.

Namjoon’s heart stopped entirely, before quickening to an uncomfortably fast pace he felt in his ears.

The page had been wiped blank, except for two words scrawled on the middle of the page in ink.

_Too easy :)_

Namjoon didn’t even realize his jaw was hanging before Yoongi and Jesy were staring at him concerningly.

“That little sneak,” Namjoon muttered to himself, taking his reading glasses off and placing them down on the table.

“What’s—”

“Be right back,” Namjoon whispered quickly, bounding to his feet and shoving the chair back so hard it might’ve fallen, but Namjoon didn’t have time for that.

He looked everywhere as he hurried out of the library. His head snapped back and forth, looking for that tiny girl with the blonde curls.

Nothing but tired students clutching their warm robes trying to study.

Namjoon burst out of the library, looking side to side in the hallway.

There.

Jade stood in the hallway outside, leaning by a lit torch that bathed her face in dancing yellow and orange lights. The shadows cast after the flame flickered couldn’t hide her smirk.

And in her hand, the piece of parchment he knew carried the ink of his lyrics.

“You’re a slow reader,” Jade called out, her voice echoing through the empty hallway. “You missed the fireworks.”

Namjoon couldn’t speak, let alone think. It…it was in her hand. She’d found it, she’d…finished it. She’d read it.

“How’d you even…”

“It’s beautiful, Joonie,” Jade said quietly, as Namjoon moved closer, still bemused.

Jade held up the parchment, shaking her head in disbelief. “It really is, you have a gift, without a doubt. The wordplay is genius, and I adore that second verse, the parallels in there and in the third verse, I would never have come up with that imagery…”

“Jade…” Namjoon said weakly.

“One small thing though, I think you should replace ‘there’ with ‘here’ in the bridge, it doesn’t really matter but I think it helps reinforce the intimacy—”

“I love you.”

Jade stared at him, her lips curling into another smile. “Am I not right in the middle of critiquing something you wrote?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Namjoon agreed. “I love you.”

The flames lit up her face, showing her reddened cheeks. And Namjoon could barely breathe, watching her hair fall over her face as she ducked her head, hiding her blush. The first time he’d said those words aloud to her.

“How’d you do it?” Namjoon said with a cracked voice. “I thought it’d take a week? We spent the last two days studying?”

“I liked this last spot,” Jade said, ignoring his questions. She gazed up at the torch, her fingers brushing against the wall.

“I thought it was a little corny—”

“It absolutely was,” Jade said seriously. “Our first kiss?”

Now it was Namjoon’s turn to blush.

“But I enjoyed the hunt. I liked the riddles, especially this last spell to reveal this paper, that was a thrilling sixty seconds.”

“I thought that’d take you a day to figure out,” Namjoon muttered.

Jade giggled, then she closed the gap between the two of them, draping her arms over Namjoon’s shoulders and gazing up at him. “Joonie, you are very, very smart, in so many fields…but…”

“I get it,” Namjoon chuckled, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close. The flames in the torch cracked like a log fire.

“Did you actually like the song or are you lying?”

Jade didn’t roll her eyes, just smiled brighter up at him. “I really loved it. I’m so proud of you, and so happy you chose to share it with me.”

Namjoon swallowed the lump in his throat, hoping that being in close vicinity to flames would burn away the happy tears before they fell.

A tear fell anyway, evidenced by Jade cupping his cheek and stroking them away, before she kissed him gently.

“I also have a thing for artists,” she whispered, and Namjoon broke out in laughter, holding her tighter then kissing her again.

“Now, what does a ‘thing’ mean, exactly?” Namjoon asked in mock curiosity, still holding her in his arms.

“Come back to the common room and find out,” Jade said in a dark voice that made Namjoon feel…things.

“I’ll get our stuff,” Namjoon said quickly, turning back to the library doors and preparing a weak excuse to give Yoongi and Jesy.

“Oh, by the way,” Jade called out, and Namjoon stopped to face her. She held up the parchment. “Yes, I’ll go to the Yule Ball with you.”

Namjoon grinned. “Oh right, that.”

“You don’t see anything funny about all of this, asking me to the ball, do you?” Jade asked. Her tone reminded Namjoon of Jesy earlier in the library.

He shook his head, still confused.

Jade laughed. “I hate to break it to you Joonie, but I’m your girlfriend, so you’re kinda stuck with me as a date regardless.”

Namjoon froze again. “Oh…”

“But… if all this is what you’ll do to ask your girlfriend on a date…” Jade added in that same dark voice, raising a brow.

Namjoon gazed at her, wondering if he could just forget the books and make Yoongi carry them.

She didn’t even need to finish, her finger twirling in her curls was enough to make Namjoon walk back towards her again.

Until Jade pulled out her wand and pointed it at him. “Books first.”

“Are we planning on reading while doing…things?”

Jade pulled a face. “Things...? Joonie…We have a midterm in two days.”

Namjoon frowned.

Then Jade broke out in a grin again. “I’m kidding. Hurry up, we can only spare so much time.”

Namjoon sprinted back into the library, ignoring the stares and huffs of indignation as he blew past students to get back to his table.

Yoongi and Jesy seemed deep in conversation until Namjoon’s arrival shattered their bubble.

“Why are you so—” Jesy stared at Namjoon, catching sight of his stupid grin, then groaning. “Oh, come on.”

“What?” Namjoon asked, seeing Yoongi make the same annoyed expression.

“Do you have to make it so obvious?” Yoongi mumbled.

“Sorry,” Namjoon said quickly, with no remorse in his voice. “She liked it, Yoongi, she _liked_ it.”

Yoongi rolled his eyes, but Namjoon caught his soft smile growing as Namjoon packed their books.

As Namjoon made to leave the two of them to their ‘studying’, Yoongi grabbed his arm, pulling Namjoon to a hard brake.

Yoongi glanced up at him, with a mixture of pride and slight playful annoyance. “I’m happy for you, mate.”

Namjoon smiled back. “Thanks for all the help.” All those years of conversations and exchanges and advice, packed in the word ‘help’. But Yoongi still nodded once in understanding, never one for too many words.

And Namjoon continued rushing out, not wanting Jade to wait for him again.


	3. The Sneak

*2 weeks until the Yule Ball*

If there was one thing Yoongi was sure of, it was that he hated Park Jimin.

And Jimin definitely hated him back.

Yet, every Saturday evening, Yoongi found himself hiding behind the bleachers at the Quidditch stands, watching Jimin practice alone.

Yoongi wasn’t quite sure how it started. He got along fairly well with Jimin when they were both sorted into Slytherin. But they were both Slytherins, strongly ambitious, meaning a little competition between them happened naturally as the first schoolyear progressed. But Slytherins tended to have loyal friendships despite it, so the Slytherins in their year failed to grasp why Jimin and Yoongi despised each other.

Yoongi couldn’t even pinpoint a time. Somewhere around second and third year, they just stopped talking. Then their playful competition in class grew nasty, then the insults weren’t just contained to the classroom. And those insults got personal.

When Jimin became a prefect, that’s when it got worse. Yoongi didn’t really care about being a prefect, he wasn’t one to follow rules, much less enforce them, but the fact that Jimin got it…it pissed him off more than he wanted. Seeing the polished badge glint on Jimin’s finely tailored robes seemed to ignite a visceral anger in Yoongi. 

Another thing that angered him was that Jimin never punished him as a prefect. He just…never acknowledged him at all, other than the insults thrown behind his back that Jesy would overhear and relay to Yoongi.

Jesy and Namjoon would ask him about Jimin, constantly. Eventually Jesy desisted. She could always read his mind; it was one of the many reasons she was his friend. They both understood each other, because they were both so similar. Namjoon, however, his social antennae weren’t quite as advanced as Jesy’s. Yoongi hated talking about Jimin, because that meant Namjoon would deep dive into Yoongi’s mind and probably discover just how close love and hate could be.

Because if there was one more thing Yoongi was sure of, it was that he was in love with Park Jimin.

And bloody Hell, did Yoongi hate that he was in love.

He hated the way Jimin looked in the morning, fluffy pink hair that he ruffled with his hand, drowsy eyes blinking awake, the way his arms flexed when he picked up his heavier books, the way he smirked when he won the house any points.

He hated the way Jimin never shut up about Quidditch, gushing about new games and his favorite teams to anyone who would listen.

He hated how good of a prefect Jimin was, giving second chances to first years, helping the younger students get used to the school, fighting for his own house whenever another professor threatened to take too many points away.

He especially hated the way Jimin would flop on his bed right next to Yoongi’s, sweating from Quidditch practice, his hair a mess covering his eyes and fluttering when he breathed out, his expression picturesque of peace and bliss.

Yoongi hated that he loved it.

He also hated the way Jimin played Quidditch, because it made Yoongi feel a certain way he didn’t like feeling when it came to Jimin.

Jimin, lean and flexible, twisting in the air and turning tricks when he knew his team was winning, catching the snitch effortlessly and blowing cocky kisses to the crowd after he won.

It was because Jimin hated Yoongi, that Yoongi hated he loved Jimin. It was so bloody unfair, that Jimin’s soft smile and giggle that he only let show in the common room with his mates, made Yoongi want to melt. Thank Merlin for Jesy, who was always there when Yoongi needed to rant about how much he hated Jimin.

He wondered if Jesy knew, considering how obsessed he must seem with Yoongi.

She didn’t know he spent Saturday nights watching Jimin practice, so maybe Yoongi was still safe.

Yoongi wasn’t stalking him, he just…It was beautiful to watch. He did his schoolwork too, the fresh air was healthy, plus silence besides the occasional whoosh of Jimin sweeping past provided Yoongi’s mind with some peace, letting song lyrics write themselves.

Yoongi didn’t like Quidditch much, but he’d watch Jimin play it solo anytime. One time, Jimin caught the snitch in mere seconds after releasing it, narrowly dodging a bludger and leaped off his broomstick as he neared the ground. And his smile…As far as Jimin knew, no one was watching, which meant that smile was just for himself, not for the swoons of a crowd. And Yoongi had never seen a smile so bright, playful and proud, with his eyes twinkling from the sinking sun and a laugh that rivaled any beautiful sound Yoongi had ever heard in his life. Like Christmas bells, like a child’s laugh when they first saw snow…All of Yoongi’s songs sounded shite after hearing that. Not that he thought much of his songs before that.

Sometimes Yoongi would think and wonder of another life, when Yoongi and Jimin never fell out over something they never knew, and maybe…they could’ve been friends. He doubted Jimin would ever want to be more. But they were too far gone, and Yoongi could only match Jimin’s glare with something even meaner, colder.

And to be fair, watching Namjoon and his girlfriend cuddle and hold hands, made Yoongi nauseous, so maybe romance was off the table regardless if it was Jimin.

That’s fine. It’s fine, Yoongi thought. The rush he got from seeing Jimin smile was enough to keep him going, anyway.

A rush of fast wind made Yoongi look up from his song, peering through the bleachers at the Quidditch field. He saw nothing, assuming Jimin was shooting up through the clouds, eyes like a hawk searching for that golden ball.

Then Yoongi’s eyes spotted something dark across the field, and Yoongi realized that rush of wind wasn’t Jimin.

A bludger.

The bludger Jimin released to practice with had launched itself right at Yoongi.

Just before it would’ve caved a hole in Yoongi’s face, he flattened on his stomach and covered his head with his hands, praying for a painless death.

He was still alive, after a deafening crash as the bludger broke through the wooden bleachers, soaring mere centimeters above Yoongi’s head, because he felt pieces of wood and dust settles on his body. 

“Leigh-Anne I swear to Merlin—!”

Shit. Jimin.

Yoongi twisted his body, letting the wood shards fall off his body as he stumbled to his feet.

“No, no,” he groaned, seeing his notes fall through cracks in the bleachers and then fly with the wind. He scrambled to gather every piece of parchment he could, until a very familiar whoosh reached his ears and the sound of someone dismounting a broom was right behind him.

“Min Yoongi?”

Yoongi stiffened. He hated Jimin’s annoying, high-pitched voice. He also loved Jimin’s light, melodic voice.

Yoongi turned, putting on the cold mask Jimin always saw.

“You could’ve killed me,” Yoongi said coldly.

Jimin’s lips twisted into a snarl. “You kidding? If I sent a bludger your way, it’d do the job.”

“Good to know,” Yoongi retorted. He didn’t really know what to say next, this conversation had already lasted longer than any talk the two had experienced in the last four years.

Jimin looked down at the chaos around Yoongi’s feet, parchment everywhere, ink spilled, plus the pieces of wood still in Yoongi’s hair.

“What are you even doing here?” Jimin asked in a disgusted voice. “What are you gaining from sneaking and spying on me, you creep?”

The last word struck Yoongi’s heart like lightning, but he didn’t let it show.

“Sorry to disappoint you, but not everyone is in love with your Quidditch moves,” Yoongi spit out. “Some people like peace and quiet.”

Jimin scoffed. “You could try the lake, or the Forbidden Forest, I know it’d be nice to get some peace and quiet from you.”

“Fuck off,” Yoongi said through gritted teeth, packing his arms with his notes and standing up to Jimin.

“You’re the one here uninvited.” Jimin snapped back.

“Consider me gone. You’re free to practice fan servicing third year girls alone.”

“Aw, is that jealously, Min Yoongi?”

“For the second time, fuck off. I’ve already asked nicely.”

“Do I need to report you for foul language, Min Yoongi? I should at least dock you five house points for that.”

Yoongi pushed past Jimin, purposefully shoving him with his shoulder, and Jimin’s light, skinny body nearly toppled over. Yoongi immediately felt guilty, not meaning to actually push him to the ground, but he wouldn’t show regret or sympathy in front of him.

“That’s another five points.” Jimin breathed heavily, steadying himself again. He flattened out his training robes, and ran a hand through his disheveled pink hair.

Then Jimin shoved Yoongi back.

“Fuck—!” Yoongi grunted, his hands losing grip on all of his notes. He looked up at Jimin, who was glaring back with the same amount of hatred in his eyes.

And Yoongi couldn’t contain himself, launching at Jimin like a bludger.

But Jimin’s solo training had paid off, and he dodged Yoongi like the bludger he was. Jimin twirled around Yoongi like a ballet dancer, and then stuck his foot out, tripping Yoongi, who fell hard on his back. Yoongi grunted, trying to get up only to realize Jimin was now sitting on him, pinning his arms down which were so desperate to punch him right now.

Yoongi struggled, but Jimin was somehow stronger, locking him down, and Yoongi was suddenly hyper aware of the way Jimin was sitting on his lap, knees on either side of Yoongi’s chest, leaning very close down, his face very close to Yoongi’s. There was a burning hatred in Jimin’s eyes, and Yoongi could only hope he himself looked as threatening.

He could feel Jimin’s breath on his lips.

And Jimin’s breathing slowed until there was just a moment of complete quiet, with them staring each other out.

“Get off me,” Yoongi said gruffly, pushing against Jimin’s now weaker hold. Jimin dismounted Yoongi quickly, taking several steps back as Yoongi once again got to his feet.

“Gladly,” Jimin said, with not nearly enough poison in his voice as Yoongi expected. In fact, it sounded more like shame, if anything.

Yoongi didn’t even bother picking up his notes. He just wanted to leave as fast as possible.

“You’re bleeding…”

That’s when Yoongi finally felt the stinging pain in his back, burning when he moved. He glanced over his shoulder, eyes catching Jimin, who was staring at him. For the first time in years, Yoongi didn’t see hatred in Jimin’s eyes.

“Whatever,” Yoongi muttered, and kept walking.

“I can see the blood through your dark coat, Min Yoongi.”

Yoongi shut his eyes, unsure if he hated or loved every time Jimin called him by his full name.

“It doesn’t hurt. I’m fine,” Yoongi lied. “Leave me alone.”

“Stop being so stubborn, I’ll get my wand.”

“You know healing spells?” Yoongi scoffed.

Jimin paused. “Right. I’ll get a kit, there’s usually Muggle ones in the stands for emergencies.”

Then Yoongi was alone, peering over his shoulder, trying to get a look at his wound that seared whenever Yoongi twisted his torso.

Fucking prefects, he thought. They never knew when to leave people alone, especially students their age. He did not need to be babied by Jimin of all people.

Yoongi reached under his coat through his sleeve, feeling around his back for anything scary. Then his fingers touched something wet and mushy that sent his body spasming in pain, and he cried out, pulling his hand back quickly.

His hand was nearly covered in blood, and Yoongi could see fragments of wood and dust in the red. He glanced down where Jimin had essentially straddled him, and saw a very sharp piece of wood, dislodged from the bludger attack, pointing up like a dagger, the tip a frightening color red.

Excellent, Yoongi thought. He’d been impaled.

Madame Pomfrey would fix him up, Yoongi realized, and tried to walk away from the obliterated Quidditch stand. Until he soon discovered walking too hurt, something about the way his shoulder blades would move when his arms swung naturally. He really didn’t think walking like an idiot all the way to the Hospital Wing would be good for his reputation.

It hurt, it really hurt, he could feel pieces of wood stabbing him from the inside.

So Yoongi sat down on the wooden floor, giving in.

Jimin returned to see Yoongi desperately trying to hide his tears.

“Can you take off your coat, and anything underneath?” Jimin asked brusquely, sounding like a real Healer. Damn if that voice switch from playful sixteen-year-old boy to professional prefect didn’t do things to Yoongi…

“It’s winter, are you insane?” Yoongi muttered.

Jimin sighed. He pulled out his wand, summoning free pieces of wood that settled in a small bonfire formation. He then whispered an inaudible incantation, making the wooden floor flame repellent. With his wand pointed directly at the mini-bonfire at Yoongi’s feet, he muttered, “ _Incendio_.”

Flames burst from Jimin’s wand, landing in the collection of wood and bubbling into a small, very warm fire.

Defeated, Yoongi hesitantly began shrugging off his coat, but winced in pain, feeling the fabric sticking to his wound.

“Let me help.”

“You’ve done enough,” Yoongi said coldly, but Jimin persisted, reaching for Yoongi’s coat and gently helping him detach it from Yoongi’s back.

Yoongi was grateful the evening wasn’t windy, but it wasn’t warm either. He wasn’t the type to be shirtless, ever, and when Jimin began unbuttoning Yoongi’s blouse, that’s when he fully backed away.

“I’m not a vegetable,” Yoongi snarled. Jimin held up his hands in defense, letting Yoongi undress silently.

How did those Quidditch players do it, jumping in the lake during winter after games for shits and giggles? Yoongi could feel his body stiffening to ice, and he still had a long sleeve shirt on.

“I’m sorry,” Jimin said softly, watching Yoongi wince as he pulled off his reddened button up shirt, the back stained with blood. “Sorry for hurting you.” He paused for a moment. “S’not what a good prefect should do.”

“I said it doesn’t hurt,” Yoongi grunted, but based on the amount of blood, he knew Jimin would know he was lying. “Just do what you need to do.”

Jimin opened a red zipped up bag, the contents unrecognizable to Yoongi. First, Jimin slid his hands into rubber blue gloves, then he pulled out some clump of cloth, like a tissue, and pressed it against Yoongi’s bare back.

Yoongi bit his lip, holding back a gasp at the sudden pressure on the hole in his back. He could feel Jimin’s palm pushing the cloth in, and gently dabbing around it.

Yoongi held his hands above the small fire, desperate for any gust of warmth as Jimin kneeled down behind him.

Then he felt Jimin’s finger brush against his back.

“What are you doing,” Yoongi demanded, too cold to turn and confront him face to face.

“There’s a splinter, I need to remove it. The bleeding isn’t as bad as I thought, by the way, you’ll live.”

Yoongi crossed his arms, which also hurt, but he remained sullen. “How do you even know how to use that Muggle garbage?”

“Our captain makes it a part of training,” Jimin said calmly, his voice whispering into Yoongi’s ear. “Healing spells are difficult, and Muggle first aid kits can be helpful when time is pressing. Nothing wrong with learning simplicity, useless as it may seem to us.”

Yoongi rolled his eyes. Jimin’s finger began pushing on Yoongi’s skin, opening his wound, and Yoongi felt something, small, but cold and metal literally enter him.

“Ow!” Yoongi yelped, his body contorting at the feeling of the foreign instrument.

“Yoongi, I need you to hold still,” Jimin pleaded. “I have to get the piece out before it sinks too far into your body.”

Embarrassed by the outburst, especially since minutes ago he’d proclaimed how painless he felt, Yoongi begrudgingly relaxed again.

So, Jimin was touching him.

Yoongi’s hands curled into fists. Of course, this would be the situation for something he’d dreamed about. A physical fight that left him wounded, shirtless in the winter, while Jimin with all his street smarts got to play Healer and fix him up.

Most of all, Yoongi really hated how…how _not mean_ Jimin was being. When Jimin was being a dick, it made the line between hate and love crystal clear. Now Jimin was touching him, being gentle and apologizing.

Why the hell did Jimin have to complicate it all?

He’s doing it because he’s a prefect, an annoying voice in Yoongi’s mind said. He has to, he’s supposed to take care of his housemates. He’s doing it for points, for teacher validation.

Yoongi decided to agree with the annoying voice. It uncomplicated things.

“I’m gonna put some numbing cream around the wound,” Jimin said after several minutes of silence, as he finished plucking inside Yoongi’s flesh. “Then I’ll take you to Madame Pomfrey’s…she can close the wound. I haven’t mastered stitching yet.”

“Numbing cream…” Yoongi muttered, perplexed at these medical words.

“It dulls the senses, you won’t feel pain when you walk,” Jimin explained, and again, Yoongi felt Jimin’s fingers on his back, this time smoothing out a cool cream onto his skin.

Yoongi closed his eyes, the warmth from the fire Jimin’s slow, gentle movements near putting him to sleep.

“Why’d you think I was Leigh-Anne?” Yoongi asked, suddenly remembering Jimin’s threatening first words. “Also, who is Leigh-Anne?”

Jimin chuckled, and Yoongi’s stomach turned at the unfamiliar but wonderful sound. “She’s the Gryffindor seeker. She’s…really talented, terrifyingly fast. We used to spy on each other a lot last year, send each other bludgers if we caught each other sneaking. I’ve been working on this move my captain suggested, really dangerous, and I can’t have her watching me practice it.”

“Wouldn’t want someone trying to steal your thunder,” Yoongi snorted. “What will the poor third year girls do if you lose?”

“Merlin forbid it,” Jimin said with just as much sarcasm, but Yoongi could practically hear Jimin grinning.

No. No, no, no. It wasn’t supposed to be this easy to talk to Jimin. Yoongi hated Jimin, he had to, because Jimin hated Yoongi and that’s as easy as it was supposed to be. Did he have a reason? Did either of them? Did it matter? No, hatred was easy. The more insults behind each other’s backs, the better. Yoongi didn’t want to be feeling things, confusion and complications always lead to pain.

Yoongi needed to tell Jimin to fuck off again, and then Jimin would glower at him and they’d keep ignoring each other and then the world would be happy.

Jimin’s fingers left Yoongi’s skin, and the loss felt worse than the wound itself.

“Come on, I’ll take you back up to the castle.”

No, thank you, Yoongi wanted to say, but the cruel words wouldn’t leave his throat. The last two words did.

“Thank you.” Though he wasn’t sure if Jimin even heard him.

Nevertheless, he swore Jimin nodded at his words.

“ _Aguamenti_ ,” Jimin murmured, water shooting out from his wand and extinguishing the small fire. Yoongi was left shirtless, feeling his bones freeze in the sudden 0ice-cold atmosphere.

“Oh, sorry,” Jimin said awkwardly, quickly looking around for Yoongi’s clothes. He held up Yoongi’s blood-soaked robes, then dropped them.

“Um.” Jimin scanned the destroyed bleachers. Then, without hesitation, he shrugged off his own training robes. “Here, use mine, they’re a little sweaty, but they’re very warm.”

Yoongi was shivering too much to even reach out for the robes. “Wh-what ab-about you?”

“Don’t worry about me right now,” Jimin said quickly. “I just trained for over an hour, so to be honest, I’m burning up.”

Jimin stepped closer to him, and then wrapped the robes around Yoongi, helping him slide his ice cold, pale arms into the fluffy sleeves.

Yoongi was again hyper-aware of how close Jimin was to him. As Jimin buttoned the robes around him, Yoongi was pressed against Jimin’s chest.

And this time, when Jimin met Yoongi’s eyes, Yoongi couldn’t find a trace of hatred in them.

Jimin’s hands were still unnecessarily adjusting the collars of Yoongi’s robes.

Yoongi was frozen, and not because of the cold. He couldn’t even breathe. There was a look in Jimin’s eyes he’d never seen before, much less a look Jimin would give Yoongi.

Jimin’s grip loosened, and the moment ended.

Except Yoongi wasn’t ready to leave the peace yet.

“No—”

Yoongi reached for Jimin’s falling hands, pulling them back up to his collars. His fingers entangled with Jimin’s.

Then Jimin kissed him.

All the coldness in Yoongi melted away, like Jimin’s lips were a ray of sunshine lighting up his whole body.

Namjoon was right.

All those love songs Namjoon wrote about his girlfriend, panicking about what word best captured her beauty, her mind, her spirit, their first kiss, whatever he rambled on about, Yoongi had dismissed it in his mind as idiotic. Had Yoongi ever kissed anyone? No, but he knew a kiss wouldn’t be like fireworks or whatever trite analogy he heard pop artists describe it as.

And now, with Jimin grasping the collars of his robes tighter and harder, his soft lips brushing on Yoongi’s, Yoongi realized he owed Namjoon and every single pop singer alive an apology.

It really was like fireworks bursting in every color imaginable, like a magnificent sunrise that stole your breath and rendered you speechless. It was Jimin.

It was Jimin.

Reality crashed back, muting all the screaming, panicking voices in his head, freezing all the blood rushing through his veins.

Yoongi pulled away.

Jimin’s eyes fluttered open, his lips puffy and pink, his eyes wide and scared.

“Why are you kissing me?” Yoongi whispered in a panicked voice.

Jimin’s lip was trembling. “I…I don’t know. I’m supposed to hate you.”

“I’m supposed to hate you too.”

 _What are you doing!_ A different voice, probably the horny one, was screaming inside Yoongi’s head. The boy he’d been infatuated with for years had kissed him. Jimin had _kissed_ him, and Yoongi was reiterating the fact that they hated each other.

This would make a fantastic pop song, Yoongi thought to himself. Truly the definition of going against one’s interest.

It was just…it didn’t make sense. Why Jimin, who had shown day after day for years that he despised Yoongi, would kiss him. Maybe it wasn’t romantic? Maybe it was part of a healing spell, like the kiss of life or something, or it was a friendly thing? Maybe it was a joke? Because Yoongi couldn’t think of one reason why Jimin would ever be interested in him.

Yoongi now realized he’d been staring at Jimin silently for a full minute now. More specifically, at Jimin’s lips.

And that’s when Yoongi’s body for once overpowered his mind. His hands cupped Jimin’s face and he kissed him back.

It was concern, Yoongi decided, a concern that Jimin might be freezing to death, that made Yoongi pull Jimin close enough that the robes might as well have been wrapped around both of them.

Yoongi couldn’t get enough of him. The taste of Jimin’s lips, the way Jimin’s hair tangled in Yoongi’s fingers, the way Jimin nearly collapsed into Yoongi for warmth.

“Wait no,” Jimin gasped, breaking apart. “We can’t do this…you can’t do this.”

Yoongi was breathless as well. He couldn’t quite feel his legs at the moment, and he was unsure if that was the cold or just Jimin’s effect.

“What are you talking about?”

Jimin bit his lip. Damn if that didn’t make him even more desirable, Yoongi thought.

“I’m not that kind of guy,” Jimin said, his head falling into his hands. “And I know you’re not either.”

Yoongi blinked, stunned silent. Did he mean he wasn’t gay, or he wasn’t the type to fool around in a Quidditch stand? Yoongi was pretty sure he himself was gay, though.

“I’m so sorry Yoongi,” Jimin sighed. “I’m a prefect, I’m supposed to be a role model…I…It’s my fault, I got carried away.”

“Jimin,” Yoongi said firmly, using his name for the first time in he didn’t know how long. Usually when he was shit talking Jimin to Jesy or Namjoon he’d just call him “the prefect” or the kinder, “that pink fucker”.

“You need to stop being so dramatic.”

Jimin winced. “Don’t, please don’t, I’m embarrassed enough,” he groaned, backing away from Yoongi. “I shouldn’t have pushed you, I’m sorry. I promise, Yoongi, I won’t tell her.”

And then, in mere seconds, Jimin picked up the medical package, grabbed his broom, and sprinted away.

Away from Yoongi.

Yoongi, who was gaping at Jimin’s sudden flee from whatever had just happened. Still dressed in Jimin’s training robes, still tasting Jimin on his lips.

Yoongi’s head was so packed with thoughts he couldn’t speak, because he felt like he was experiencing every single emotion possible at once. That...that…bastard. Leaving, running away, with no explanation. What the bloody hell was he even talking about? What kinda of “guy” was Jimin even talking about being? Who was “her”? Leigh-Anne?

Yoongi grabbed the few sheets of parchment that were still in reach, a scowl forming on his face as he collected his song lyrics. Prick. Where does he get off on breaking off a kiss, spouting some nonsense, then running away?

Unless it was actually all bullshit, and Jimin wanted to run away. Jimin had just made up some excuse to run away from Yoongi in particular. That made more sense.

A flurry of movement caught Yoongi’s eye, and he turned, seeing a pink-haired boy hurry across the Quidditch field towards the locker rooms, not even bothering to look behind and up at Yoongi who was still in the destroyed bleachers.

“Good riddance, then,” Yoongi muttered to himself.

 _Liar_. _Don’t act like you’d hate having Jimin’s lips on yours again_.

Yoongi shut his eyes, trying to block out the fresh memory as he reached for his bloodstained robes.

_Soft, pink lips._

“Enough,” Yoongi told himself, feeling like he’d gone insane. “Enough…”

Half of him wanted to chase Jimin down, pin him to a wall and demand some explanation.

The other half just wanted to go to Madame Pomfrey alone, and then never think about Park Jimin again, unless it was the usual trash talk with Jesy.

He wasn’t going to tell anyone about the kiss, ever. He had no idea what it even meant.

Why would Jimin screw with his feelings like that. Yoongi didn’t have time for confusion and complications, and of course it would Park Jimin of all people would be the one to ruin him.

Yoongi’s heart clenched.

Nope! That was definitely not the emotion Yoongi wanted to feel at the moment.

Yoongi watched Jimin disappear into the Slytherin tent, out of sight.

 _Fuck you_.

Out of mind.

Yoongi made way for the stairs at the end of the bleachers, hopping over the holes in the wood that Jimin’s bludger had wrecked through.

He didn’t look back at the Quidditch field, or even look for Jimin as he headed up to the castle, feeling the numbing cream start to wear off and pain spread from his back like tendrils, like an ink drop in water.

He made sure to replace every unnecessary pop song-like feeling with another “fuck Park Jimin” in his mind. It felt very therapeutic.

Because Yoongi knew he was right from the beginning.

Hatred was always easier.


	4. The Stars

*One week until the Yule Ball*

As fall bled into winter, the heavy clouds carrying snow and rain had slithered in, blocking the night sky, which meant Taehyung had nothing to look at after he snuck out the Hufflepuff common room and made his way up a dizzying number of stairs to the Astronomy Tower.

Tonight’s sky, however, was clear, and Professor Trelawney had predicted a few more clear days before the deep winter storms rolled in.

Unfortunately, the storms arrived on the day of the Yule Ball. Which meant Taehyung couldn’t hide out on the tower, meaning he would be stuck in the common room, meaning people would ask questions. Even if he tried to hide in his dorm, close the curtains of his four-poster, his fellow Hufflepuffs would march in and demand an explanation for his absence.

Taehyung didn’t think they cared, though. It always felt like a performance. Like it was in their DNA to inquire about Taehyung’s state of mind. No one ever really wants to know what’s up with you, they just ask so they can go about their day knowing they tried.

Not to mention, Hufflepuffs liked to party, despite the meek manner the other houses liked to associate them with. Hufflepuffs especially loved to party especially after a well-played Quidditch match, even if they lost. The only escape was the Astronomy Tower.

So, Taehyung sat alone with the stars, noting down the visible shapes they made for Astronomy and their meaning for Divination. It was quiet, and the gentle fluttering of tree leaves in the Forbidden Forest and wind brushing past his ears helped him breathe.

He usually kept it all to himself. Only once was he caught, thankfully by someone reasonable. He’d been sitting with his thoughts for too long, old memories resurfacing and fracturing the peace he had been experiencing at the Tower. With trembling hands and uneven breaths, he’d packed his things, running back down the steps to the comfort of his bed in full panic. Then he smacked right into a Slytherin prefect monitoring the halls.

A very popular, handsome, blond Slytherin prefect and seeker, who could’ve very easily taken advantage of the immediate power dynamic that had formed.

Instead, the prefect had taken one slow look at Taehyung’s disheveled appearance and teary eyes, and squeezed Taehyung’s shoulder comfortingly. His thumb stroked Taehyung’s collarbone, which somehow slowed Taehyung’s breathing down.

“Best get to bed now,” he’d said quietly, and continued past Taehyung. 

Escaping detention had rendered Taehyung frozen for a solid minute. That night, sleep came much easier. The morning after, he refused to look at the Slytherin table at breakfast, and ignored the prefect in every class he had with him since. He didn’t know if the prefect cared, since the prefect never bothered to talk with him either.

That had been many weeks ago.

Since then, Taehyung had managed to climb the tower and back down in peace, and he wondered if the prefect still knew he was breaking curfew, and if he cared. Either way, Taehyung was alone.

Until he heard footsteps.

At first, Taehyung was frozen, wondering if he was hallucinating. Then his theories vanished when he realized someone really was climbing up the stairs, and seconds away from opening the wooden door.

Taehyung hastily stuffed his arms with parchment and books, crumpling the astronomy map into his fist. And just as the stranger’s footsteps got uncomfortably loud, Taehyung reached for his ink, and in his haste spilled the black liquid on himself.

Fully panicking and feeling ink on his face, dripping down his robes and onto the stone floor, Taehyung sidestepped out of view as the door opened, hiding behind the door hinges as it swung open.

Taehyung held his breath with his own blacked hand.

The first thing he heard was panting, someone definitely out of breath from the flights of stairs. The stranger breathed out loudly, expelling all of the energy used in one long sigh into the night.

Taehyung’s shoulders relaxed. The stranger seemed unaware another person was up here, entirely focused on the cool midnight air up on the Tower.

Taehyung peeked out from behind the open door.

The stranger’s back was to him, leaning on the ledge and gazing out into the night. He seemed about as tall as Taehyung himself, with dark, floppy hair and a heavy black floor length winter robe, making it impossible to see what House he was, let alone recognize him at all. But he looked like a student.

The stranger glanced down, and Taehyung felt his breath stop in his throat.

The stranger noticed the black spots, the fresh ink, and his eyes followed the trail, until they landed right on Taehyung, huddled by the door.

He was a student, Taehyung thought. A very handsome student.

The student stared at Taehyung; his face painted in utter perplexation.

Taehyung suddenly realized what he must look like, hiding behind a door, hands grasping onto books and parchment, with his cheeks splashed with ink.

“I…uh…”

“You’re not supposed to be up here,” the student said quickly, interrupting whatever Taehyung had been trying to say.

Taehyung searched his mind for anything to say to save himself. “Well, what are you doing up here, huh? Checkmate.”

The student narrowed his eyes. He had very pretty eyes, Taehyung thought. Dark, but not cold. Big and warm, like chocolate. Though they didn’t feel particularly inviting at the moment, glowering at him now.

“I’m a prefect,” the student replied haughtily.

“Uh…so am I,” Taehyung said quickly.

“No, you’re not.”

“Okay, you got me,” Taehyung snapped. “What do you want? I have candy in my bag, I have some sickles—”

“Are you bribing me?” The student demanded in a disgusted voice, although Taehyung swore there was a humorous glint in his eyes.

“Is it working?”

The student blinked rapidly in disbelief. “N-no. You’re a Hufflepuff, right? I need to report this to your Head of House.”

“Why would you think I’m in Hufflepuff?”

The student placed his hands on his hips. “Well, since you asked, ‘twas written in the stars that I would meet a young lad from the House of Helga Hufflepuff on this fateful winter night… a boy with a hardworking heart that would give unconditional loyalty.”

Taehyung stared the student, feeling his cheeks blushing, then glanced at the stars, then at the student again.

The student sighed. “Your uniform tie is yellow and black.”

“Oh,” Taehyung stammered, feeling embarrassed he had actually been falling for that dramatic story.

The student chuckled, but covered it up with a casual cough. “What’s your name?”

“You could ask the stars,” Taehyung muttered.

“Taehyung!” The student said cheerfully.

Taehyung gaped, then looked at the stars again. Then he followed the student’s line of vision to Taehyung’s notebook in his arms, where his own name was scribbled on.

“Stop doing that, God damn it,” Taehyung protested, but feeling the corners of his lips lift.

“God?” The student said, bemused. Then he looked at the night sky, at those forsaken stars. “Oh, they’re telling me you’re Muggle-born.”

“Oh my—” Taehyung grumbled, grabbing his things. “You know what, just give me detention or dock me points, I don’t even care anymore. You’re ruining stars for me.”

Taehyung ended up reluctantly following the handsome prefect down the infinite Astronomy Tower, and then some more stairs to find Taehyung’s Head of House.

“What were you even doing up there? It’s midnight in mid-December.” The student asked after some silence.

“I don’t know, studying?” Taehyung muttered, not really interested in a therapy session with a random prefect.

“And the Astronomy Tower is preferable to say…your common room near the kitchen, with a nice fireplace and comfy couches?”

“You know, it just might be,” Taehyung replied, with as much confidence as he could muster.

When the student didn’t answer, Taehyung glanced at him, only to find him gazing back.

“What?” Taehyung asked, surprised.

“Nothing,” the student answered nonchalantly. “Um…yeah nothing.”

Neither spoke for the rest of the descent, until Taehyung’s house was deducted ten points for the break in curfew by his Head of House after the student snitched to her. Taehyung figured she was being reasonable considering how grumpy she was at the student for waking her up.

“Lucky break,” the student told Taehyung, shaking his head like some great injustice had been committed. “I would’ve taken more if I was your professor.”

“Gee, thanks, mate,” Taehyung said, rolling his eyes.

The student continued trailing behind him as Taehyung walked dejectedly back to his common room, stopping at the painting of the bowl of fruits.

“I don’t think you need to follow me anymore, you know,” Taehyung sighed.

“Oh right,” the student said, grinning. “I’ll let you go here. I know I ruined your study space…”

“It’s whatever.” Taehyung shrugged, knowing full well he’d be going back up to that Tower tomorrow night. “I need some sleep anyway.”

“Same. Night inspections are killing my study habits.”

Taehyung squinted, wondering why this student still wasn’t leaving him.

“Sorry,” the student said, shaking his head. “I’ll leave you be.”

That’s when he finally let Taehyung go, but Taehyung couldn’t help himself, bursting out with another few words.

“I didn’t catch your name. Or your house. Or your blood, for that matter.”

The student turned, smiling again. “Ah, I think that’s a question for the stars, maybe another night?”

Taehyung frowned.

“I’m Jungkook,” the student said finally, laughing gently at Taehyung’s pout. “Gryffindor. Pure blood, not that it matters because it shouldn’t. Anyway, I’ll see you around, Taehyung. Now go to bed.”

Jungkook, Taehyung reminisced. He thought he might’ve heard that name in passing conversations.

He put it in the back of his head, suddenly looking forward to a few nights of sleep, to prepare for his next nightly studying.

Taehyung did see Jungkook at breakfast the next morning, doing the complete opposite of what Taehyung did. Jungkook was in the center of a crowd of other Gryffindors, speaking passionately about something that had his followers in fits of laughter of smiles of admiration. Meanwhile, Taehyung hid his face with his Astronomy school book, prepping for a memory test in his first class of the day. He sat at the end of the Hufflepuff table, but he had a clear view of Jungkook’s performance. Jungkook’s Gryffindor robes were hanging by his shoulders, lazy and stylish, and his black hair seemed purposefully ruffled.

Taehyung watched a slightly younger Gryffindor girl came up to Jungkook some time later, whispering something in his ear. Taehyung’s interest peaked when Jungkook’s infectious smile fell, and he whispered something short back to the girl. The girl frowned, and walked away with her head down.

Why was Taehyung suddenly interested in some random Gryffindor? He didn’t know, but he didn’t like it. All throughout his classes his mind discussed possibilities of what Jungkook had been told, and why he upset his housemate.

It even stayed in his mind as Taehyung snuck out of his common room at midnight and left for the Astronomy Tower, books, parchment and ink packed in a leather shoulder bag.

The stars welcomed him back, and Taehyung got comfortable in the coldness. He dipped a quill in ink and began noting down star positions. Most everyone in his House, his whole year even, despised Divination and Astronomy. He understood why. For him, the stars had always been a personal thing.

Taehyung gazed out at one flickering star, or planet, he realized, jutting down Venus’s position.

“Taehyung.”

Taehyung’s blood ran colder than the midnight air. He turned to find Jungkook standing by the open door.

Jungkook wasn’t smiling.

Taehyung’s eyes must’ve been popping out of his skull, his mouth agape. Caught embarrassingly red-handed like a child stealing cookies. How didn’t he hear anyone come up, had he been that invested in Venus?

“Well, there’s no easy way out of this one, huh?” Taehyung eventually said, the tension growing too thick.

“If you can tell me what’s so desirable about the freezing cold Astronomy Tower, I might not snitch again,” Jungkook said, not unkindly.

Taehyung sighed. “I’ll take the detention.”

The following morning, Taehyung’s head was almost falling into his cereal. He’d never slept this much during weekends. Amazing how he was still tired after sleeping a solid eight hours.

He glanced up at the Gryffindor table, like a reflex. Jungkook wasn’t there. Many Gryffindors were studying alone or in groups, as were other students. The final midterms were today, and the Great Hall’s Christmas themed atmosphere suffered from that nervous silence.

Then a dark-haired, wide-eyed, very handsome boy seemingly materialized in front of Taehyung.

“Morning,” Jungkook said brightly.

“I think you have the wrong table,” Taehyung replied, wondering why Jungkook’s mere voice gave him chills.

“I’m right where I want to be,” Jungkook said, sitting down across from him and grabbing a sandwich. None of the other Hufflepuffs seemed to mind Jungkook’s presence, although a few Gryffindors were staring curiously.

“Must’ve hit a new low, then.”

“You shouldn’t talk like that,” Jungkook said sadly. “It’s not funny.”

Taehyung wanted to hit back with another line, but he resisted. He suddenly felt slightly offended, to the point of blushing. He always found himself funny.

“What would you like to talk about then?”

Jungkook shrugged. “You have a midterm today?”

“History of Magic,” Taehyung mumbled. “I’ve already accepted the P I will undoubtedly get.”

“Have you been studying?”

“Uh…I don’t believe that’s pertinent, actually.”

Jungkook tsked. “Just saying, if you spent less time looking at stars—”

“Alright now.” Taehyung cut off, in a harsher voice than he intended.

Jungkook fell silent, and Taehyung instantly felt guilty.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to snap,” Taehyung said quietly. “Not…really used…to people talking with me during breakfast. Or ever.”

“I’m sorry too,” Jungkook said quickly. “I don’t mean to intrude in your personal habits like that. That was out of line.”

Taehyung nodded in gratitude, and continued eating his own breakfast, more blissfully than usual, for some reason.

After a devastating attack on Taehyung’s self-esteem, he left the History of Magic test taking room, confident in his failure.

Now he could finally star-gaze and wallow in his own thoughts without the persistent voice of reason begging him to study. Finally, some peace.

Taehyung’s thighs burned as he ascended the stairs of the Astronomy Tower, his wand alit to make sure he didn’t trip in the complete darkness. He mentally cursed whoever designed this horrid Tower, with so many steps.

And when he pushed open the door to the terrace, he felt his breath be fully stolen away.

The effect of all those staircases was nothing compared to seeing Jungkook waiting for him.

“Can you not give me detention this time,” Taehyung sighed. “It’s almost Christmas.”

Jungkook smiled softly, shoving his hands into his robe pockets. His dark hair was as fluffy as ever. The stars were practically glinting in his eyes.

“I won’t tell.”

Taehyung pursed his lips, trying to figure out why Jungkook was here as well, and not to harass Taehyung. “Breaking your own rules as prefect now, are we?”

Jungkook surveyed the sky absentmindedly, ignoring Taehyung with a small smile on his face. “Beautiful night. Perfect for star-gazing.”

“Why the sudden interest?”

Jungkook looked directly at him, and Taehyung’s cheeks burned again, for some annoying reason. “Because you come up here every night to see them.”

“And that intrigues you?”

“You do, yes.”

Taehyung scoffed, and gestured to himself. “I’m afraid there’s not much substance here.”

“Stop talking about yourself like that, it’s detrimental and not funny,” Jungkook said seriously.

Taehyung bit his lip, staring at the ground like a kid who just got disciplined. “So, you’re really not ratting me out tonight?”

Jungkook shook his head, and seated himself on the stone ground and patting the ground next to him. Taehyung sat down hesitantly, crossing his legs next to Jungkook.

“What’s that one?”

Taehyung tried to follow where Jungkook was pointing. “The twinkling one? It’s Venus. It…Venus is supposed to represent your wants and desires. Or at least say something about them.”

Taehyung glanced to his left, only to find Jungkook staring at him, instead of Venus.

“What?”

Jungkook shrugged. “Never been this interested in Astronomy.”

“To be fair, most of that is Professor Sinistra dulling it down.”

Jungkook laughed, and Taehyung couldn’t help staring. His eyes crinkled adorably, his smile was brighter than all the stars, and his laugh rang through the night.

“You’re the only student in all of Hogwarts I think that actually studies for this,” Jungkook commented.

“Yeah, but how can you not…” Taehyung straightened his back, staring at the constellations. “How can you not love the stars? The meaning embedded in the way they move, the light they emit despite being so, so far away…”

Taehyung felt heat rising in his face again. “Why do you keep looking at me like that?”

“Sorry,” Jungkook said with a laugh. “I like listening to people who actually like what they’re talking about.”

He didn’t know how to answer that.

Jungkook sighed. “I know you were watching me, morning after we met.”

Taehyung cleared his throat. “Don’t know what you’re—”

Jungkook shut him up with just a knowing look. “I know it looks like it, but I’m never actually talking with those people. Like they don’t really listen to me, they just…look at me.”

“Must be difficult,” Taehyung muttered. “People liking you.”

Jungkook didn’t reply with anything snippy. Instead, he glanced yet again at Taehyung, concern etched in his eyes.

“They don’t like me. They like my family.”

Taehyung’s brows furrowed. “Who’s your family?”

Jungkook looked surprised, but also humored. “I’m…I’m Jeon Jungkook.”

“Okay.”

Jungkook grinned, rolling his eyes. “My parents, my brother…They’re all legendary Quidditch players.”

“Oh,” Taehyung said awkwardly. “I don’t really follow Quidditch. I’m not that great on a broom, to be honest.”

Jungkook laughed. “That’s fine, I’m not personally offended.”

“You’re good though,” Taehyung said. “I think. I’m not really sure. You score a lot of goals.”

Jungkook’s face fell, making Taehyung’s stomach turn uncomfortably. “Yeah well…We lost a few weeks ago. I felt awful, I had to say sorry to my team. My parents were there too…they don’t push me that much; they all say I do it to myself most of all. But I know they were disappointed… I could see it in their faces. My housemates too.”

Taehyung didn’t want to interrupt Jungkook’s flow of thoughts, and stayed silent as Jungkook picked up again.

“They were all prefects too you know? My mom was Head Girl and my dad has all these awards from school. It’s just…I’m tired.”

He sighed. “I’m really, _really_ tired.”

“That might be the nighttime prefect inspections,” Taehyung mumbled, making Jungkook smile again.

“I’ll let you in on a secret,” Jungkook whispered in Taehyung’s ear. “I don’t have night inspections.”

Taehyung laughed. “Yeah, I know. I only started getting interrupted by you two nights ago.”

“How long have you been spending nights up here?”

“I kind of always have. Weekends at least.”

Jungkook looked horrified. “So, you just abhor sleep?”

Taehyung raised his eyebrows. “Well, what were _you_ doing up here, if not inspection?”

“I’m gonna hazard a guess and say the same as you. Peace and quiet.”

Taehyung leaned back, looking up at the stars again.

“Am I right on the money?” Jungkook asked.

“Generally speaking, you might be.”

“Care to elaborate?”

Taehyung hesitated, making Jungkook visibly panic.

“Oh, you don’t have to, Merlin’s beard. I was just…riffing, you know? I’m sorry, I don’t want to push you,” Jungkook said quickly.

“It’s fine,” Taehyung shrugged. “I…Sometimes I just don’t feel peace in the common room.”

“What do you mean?”

Taehyung blinked, feeling his eyes start to burn slightly. Well, he might as well.

So, he laid out all his cards.

“My father is an astrophysicist. He studies the stars, in a more…Muggle way. He’d take me outside at night to look at the stars. I was only a kid, so, I didn’t really get what was special. Then I got my letter, and, everything changed. I didn’t know anything about magic, I didn’t know anyone. My dad still doesn’t really understand all of it. And neither does anyone here at school, I don’t feel at home anywhere anymore.”

Taehyung swallowed. “I like the stars…because…it feels like home. Wherever I am, he and I are looking up at the same sky.”

The stars twinkled back at him, like they could hear is words.

“I’ve never told anyone that.”

Jungkook sniffed. “I’m sorry you don’t feel at home here. That’s everything Hogwarts is supposed to be.”

“Well, it’s not entirely my fault,” Taehyung said flatly. “I’ve pushed my housemates away. I know they’ve tried to help, it’s in their Hufflepuff DNA. I can’t believe of all people… I’m talking about this with someone like you. Total wizard blood.”

“No, but I get it.” Jungkook insisted. “Maybe not as much but…I feel like an impostor sometimes, I feel like the whole world knows what they want from me, and I can’t give that. You can be pure blood and still don’t feel like you belong.”

Taehyung mumbled in agreement. “Don’t know what’s worse. People expecting everything from you, or people expecting nothing of you.”

“Probably sucks either way.”

Taehyung sat in silence for a few minutes, eyes scanning the stars for the peace he knew they always gave him.

Then he heard Jungkook’s teeth chattering.

“You alright?”

Jungkook probably couldn’t answer, his words barely making it past a stutter.

“Here,” Taehyung said, opening his robes and pulling Jungkook in, wrapping Jungkook in his own robes. Jungkook snuggled up, his hands like ice around Taehyung’s body.

“How are you not cold?” Jungkook said indignantly, and Taehyung felt how he was shivering against his body.

He shrugged. “Guess I’m cold blooded.”

“Don’t say that,” Jungkook muttered. His head rested on Taehyung’s chest. “You’re very warm.”

They sat for so long Taehyung noticed the stars move.

“So, are you going to the dreaded Yule Ball, or are you spending the night up here again?” Jungkook spoke up eventually.

“I think by now we both know the answer to that,” Taehyung said with a short laugh.

Jungkook didn’t laugh. “You should go. I’d miss you.”

“I’m not the best third-wheel.”

He sat up, looking at Taehyung directly. “What makes you think I have a date?”

“I-I was just guessing, you’re a catch, you know?”

Even in the dark night, Taehyung, who instantly regretted the forward compliment, could see Jungkook’s cheeks redden.

“Well… I don’t have a date,” Jungkook said after a few moments. “I got asked at breakfast a couple days ago, and I turned her down.”

“I saw. She was pretty.”

Jungkook narrowed his eyes. “But I didn’t know her. And she doesn’t know me, not really.”

“So pretentious,” Taehyung teased, ruffling the hair on Jungkook’s head. “I don’t have a date either, but I can’t complain when I don’t really have friends.”

“Maybe you have a secret admirer.”

“Imagine that,” Taehyung snorted.

Jungkook fumbled with his fingers. “We could go together.”

“Like as a goof?” Taehyung said instinctively.

Jungkook stared at him blankly. “Uh…y-yeah…That’s what I meant...”

Taehyung stared back, confused. Had Jungkook really meant what he asked? He couldn’t have, they didn’t really know each other, right?

“You sure?”

“Yeah. Like a joke.”

“Cool.” Taehyung leaned back, feeling an emptiness in his stomach. Maybe he was hungry.

“We should probably head back down,” Jungkook said suddenly. “It’s not getting any warmer.”

“I might stay up a little longer,” Taehyung said, not usually heading back so soon.

Jungkook frowned. “Well, I’ll see you at the ball, then right? Promise?”

“Fine. For you.”

Jungkook looked like he wanted to say something more. But he nodded, and left Taehyung at the Tower. He could hear Jungkook’s steps fading as Taehyung gazed up at the stars, suddenly feeling much, much colder than he usually did.

He didn’t end up staying there for much longer.


	5. The Yule Ball

*The day of the Yule Ball*

Perrie called it the punishment table.

She spent too many sickles on her shimmering, gold, ballgown to sit for the entire Yule Ball at Madame Hooch’s table, watching other students sway on the dance floor, flirting, laughing, shoveling down food.

She twirled a lock of her hair with her fingers, and peeked at Leigh-Anne, who was also sitting grumpily at the same table.

When Perrie asked her to dress nice, she meant it jokingly.

Leigh-Anne had put the entire concept of Gryffindor to shame. Her hair was in box braids, with gold ribbons embedded into the braids. Her ruby red dress fluttered in layers around her, with a glitter gold corset embraided into the fabric. If Perrie stared extra hard, she could see small lion silhouettes dancing in the gold corset.

Even Leigh-Anne’s makeup reflected her Gryffindor patriotism. Her eyes batted and revealed the light gold eyeshadow, and her lips were a striking, sexy red.

Perrie swallowed, and looked away. She had been avoiding Leigh-Anne for four weeks now.

“How goes detention?”

Perrie swiveled in her seat, her eyes landing on Hoseok walking up behind her.

She sighed. “At least I’m here. So, it’s not so bad.”

“You look nice,” Hoseok said casually.

“So do you,” Perrie replied automatically, eyes raking over his loose-fitted, white suit and slicked back hair.

Hoseok leaned in. “So does Leigh-Anne.”

Perrie smacked his arm, and pushed him away. Hoseok laughed, and wandered away, rejoining some Hufflepuffs and his own date.

The live band ended their slow jam to applause, and quickly kicked into a jazzy tune that begged for the professors to dance. The headmaster called Madame Hooch to the dance floor, who eyed both Perrie and Leigh-Anne in warning. Then she left to dance embarrassingly with the faculty.

“That’s a nice dress,” Perrie mumbled.

“What?”

“I said do you want some more dressing?” Perrie said, panicking as Leigh stared at her.

“I’m good…”

Perrie tapped the table napkins, her nails clicking on the wood.

“Your dress is nice too.”

Perrie blushed at Leigh’s words, especially that she’d heard Perrie’s hushed compliment. She glanced at Leigh. “Where’d you buy yours?”

“I designed it, actually,” Leigh said quietly. “The Yule Ball is a once in a lifetime experience, I wanted to wear something special.”

Perrie sank in her seat, suddenly feeling guilt eat her up from the inside.

“That sounds kinda vain, doesn’t it?” Leigh said suddenly. “I could care less about the Triwizard Tournament, as long as I got my Christmas ball.”

“It’s not vain,” Perrie muttered. “Christmas is my favorite holiday, mostly because I get to decorate stuff.”

Leigh smiled, and jumped onto Madame Hooch’s empty seat. “You decorate at home?”

“Of course,” Perrie replied eagerly, a bright grin on her face. “I like to do a different color palette every year, and I wear a matching dress for Christmas dinner.”

“Right after midterms I try to study new decorating and sewing spells,” Leigh said, giggling. “My mom and my older sister do it too, it’s our little family tradition.”

“Got any new ones?”

Leigh pursed her lips, and pulled out her wand. “Do you trust me?”

“I trust your taste.”

“Good enough.”

Leigh muttered several foreign incantations, her wand swaying gently, and golden sparks flying out and embracing Perrie.

Perrie blinked, and looked down. Her dress lost the straps, and the matte fabric had been replaced by golden sparkles that cascaded down like a waterfall.

“Oh my…”

Perrie touched the glittering fabric, her fingers trailing with the pattern.

“I love it,” she said with a soft smile.

“Too bad people don’t get to see it,” Leigh said, with a sad smile.

Perrie’s guilt was quickly replaced by mutual bitterness but also annoyance that Leigh was dragging this back.

She leaned back in her chair, zoning out.

It was frustrating how well they seemed to get along outside of Quidditch. Yet the field was always a bloodbath of emotions. Perrie knew Leigh-Anne’s reputation as tough on the field, but a total sweetheart in the castle. They weren’t in the same year, so Perrie couldn’t much witness the opposite of Leigh’s ferocity, but she’d never heard a bad word about Leigh through the grapevine.

The only image Perrie really had of Leigh, up close, was Leigh zooming past her on an expensive Nimbus 2001. Perrie’s Comet Two Ninety was no match for speed, but even with Hoseok’s Nimbus 2001, Leigh flew so fast she could lap him on the same broom.

Even worse, the grapevine had also tended to a rumor that famous Quidditch players had been scouting their last game for potential rookies. Of course, their team had won the game, but Perrie hadn’t. Seekers had their own game, and Leigh had won that one.

Who was she kidding? Even Hoseok teased her about it, albeit gently.

Perrie was jealous.

Now, don’t get her wrong. Perrie wouldn’t dream of being anything other than a Hufflepuff. The sorting hat didn’t sit that long on her head, anyway. But…sometimes the comments from her team made her wonder.

 _“What’s most important is having a fair game, not a winning game,”_ Hoseok would tell them every time they played.

It wasn’t that Perrie disagreed, she just liked winning. The feeling that all that hard work paid off, that she had accomplished something on her own, not because of talent or luck.

Perrie always had that sinking feeling after any Quidditch game or training, that she didn’t really belong. The spots were coveted, and Hoseok had given her a chance even after her disastrous try-out in her third year. She never felt an affinity for seeker, she much preferred beater, because what a stress-relief that must be, especially getting to direct it straight at opponents, but Hoseok made her stick with it, even when Perrie felt like quitting.

The annoying, older brother Hoseok had to be, she loved him, but hell, he was a pain in her arse sometimes.

Leigh was right, he was a good captain. Maybe too good, sometimes. Too fair.

Leigh was also the amalgam of everything Perrie envied. Her talent, her fire, the passion that her teammates all supported and contributed to.

Hoseok had been right to pull Perrie back from the fight, but Leigh’s teammates had stood beside her, yelling out in support of her.

It was unprofessional, but Perrie wanted it. She wanted a team that’d fight for her, rather than the overarching world peace.

Was she a bad Hufflepuff for wanting that? It kept her up at night, and every time she put on that uniform tie, she could feel it strangling her.

There was no House she’d rather be in, she just wished she could be a little more, not-Hufflepuff sometimes. Was that so bad?

“Perfect, she’s drunk.”

Perrie’s thoughts shattered, the music crashing in as if it had been on mute, the laughs of other students ringing in her ears.

Leigh was getting out of her chair, slowly.

“What are you doing?” Perrie hissed.

“Leaving,” Leigh replied simply, rising to her feet. “I won’t be chained to this table for the whole night. Look at Madame Hooch, she’s tipsy, she’s literally about to fall over.”

Perrie glanced at the dance floor, and saw Madame Hooch…giggling…and hanging on to Professor Sinistra for support.

“She’ll punish both of us more if she catches you,” Perrie moaned.

“I’m sorry, Edwards, but it’s Christmas, it’s the Yule Ball, I’ll take detention for the rest of the year if it means actually attending this ball. I don’t care about that stupid Quidditch game anymore.”

Leigh reached for a piece of lemon cake shaped like a giant snitch, stuffing her mouth with it, before darting away from the table.

Perrie got up too, not as fast, and followed her.

“You really don’t care?” Perrie asked tentatively when she caught up to Leigh meeting up with Gryffindors on the dance floor.

“Nope. I just want to dance.”

Perrie bit her lip, the confession bursting out. “I saw it, okay! I saw you grab the snitch! I bumped you because I wanted to win! There, you happy?”

Leigh stared at her.

Perrie cringed, stepping back in fear.

Then Leigh broke out in laughter. “I knew it!” she said gleefully. “I was right!”

“Are you gonna tell on me now?” Perrie said gloomily.

“Can’t be arsed,” Leigh said, shrugging. “It’s Christmas, and you confessing is validation enough. Plus, we’re not out of the running yet. When we beat Slytherin, we’ll play you lot again, and we’ll win, and _then_ I will tell the world of your crime, when I am waving our trophy and the snitch I caught in your face.”

Perrie rolled her eyes. “ _If_ you win.”

“At least I’ll catch the snitch,” Leigh said with a wink. Then she frowned, seeing Perrie’s face fall. “Wait, what’s wrong, I was only joking.”

“Can’t believe I cheated and still didn’t get the snitch,” Perrie grumbled. Leigh laughed, but kindly, not a mocking tone to be heard.

Leigh looked her up and down, narrowing her eyes. Perrie felt herself blushing.

“Well…If we lose, we won’t obviously, but if Slytherin beats us, they’ll be playing you next…” Leigh said, tapping her chin like she was in deep thought. “And I’d rather a Hufflepuff victory than a Slytherin victory.” She cringed, like the mere idea was disgusting.

Perrie tilted her head. “What’s your point?”

“Have you ever actually practiced, Edwards? Like, alone? Fully focusing on seeker fundamentals?”

Perrie looked away.

“Hmm,” Leigh said, seemingly content with that response. “I could train you.”

“You’d do that? What about your team, your loyalty?” Perrie asked, gaping.

Leigh shrugged. “I mean, you’re not gonna get better than me in a few months, so settle down. It’s purely for the potential downfall of Slytherin.”

“I—thank you!” Perrie said through gasps. “When can we start?”

“Uh…when we finally escape Madame Hooch’s basement,” Leigh said nervously, looking behind Perrie. She turned around, and found Madame Hooch staring at the both of them on the dance floor.

“Run,” Leigh whispered, grabbing Perrie’s hand and jerking her away from the dance floor, swerving between students effortlessly.

Perrie giggled, hitching up her skirt and nearly tripping in her attempt to catch up to Leigh’s sprint.

“Yeah, you really need speed training,” Leigh commented, not even out of breath.

“Shut up,” Perrie said with a grin, rolling her eyes, but squeezing Leigh’s hand back.

***

Jade breathed in, clearing her throat and cracking her neck. She warmed up her jaw, feeling the butterflies fly up to her throat.

“Please welcome to the stage, your very own Jade Thirlwall!” The lead singer of the Weird Sisters called out, to surprised applause.

Jade entered the stage, smiling softly, and shaking the lead singer’s hand. Her hands clamped around the floating mic, and she breathed out as the band struck up a slow, swaying, holiday-themed tune, that had the students exclaiming eagerly they recognized it and rushing to the floor to dance with their dates.

Jade found Namjoon’s eyes in the crowd, his shocked expression making her giggle. Her other housemates, plus Jesy, stood gaping at her appearance. She wondered for a moment where Yoongi was, but this was no time for concerns of other people. Namjoon’s reaction was most important.

She didn’t tell anyone, not a single soul, except her Head of House whom she’d begged for a chance to sing at the ball.

See, Namjoon had truly wiped the floor with her when it came to these festivities. She’d never expected some wild treasure hunt for a simple ball invite, and to be fair she’d never thought he could actually do it.

And while she loved him to death for doing all that for her, she knew she had to step up her own game and surprise him just the same.

He hadn’t been allowed to see her dress, her anything. Jade made him promise to leave the common room before her and meet her at the ball. She remembered trying to hide her laugh at Namjoon’s bewildered expression when she told him to leave without her. Poor guy. She loved him so much.

Jade opened her mouth, humming along to the piano melody, before she began to sing in a low, husky voice.

She closed her eyes, swaying gently to the groove, and when the chorus hit, her vocals jumped up an octave to match the dancing, high-pitched piano melody and crescendo. Jade ended the chorus with a flick of her own, neatly curled hair that had been pinned to one side, and opened her eyes again, winking at Namjoon.

Oh, how she loved teasing him like that.

When the song finished, Jade let the last note hang for just a second longer, the vibrato echoing with the final bass guitar note and cymbal crash. The resounding applause forced a smile on her face, and she blushed when she heard Jesy whoop.

The lead singer clapped as he walked back on stage, nodding at Jade with pride.

“Nice job,” he said with a wink. “Don’t take mine, though.”

“I wouldn’t dare,” Jade replied with a laugh, and left the stage with a bounce in her step.

Namjoon was waiting for her, still frozen in place.

“How bad was it, be honest,” Jade asked, looking up at him.

Namjoon narrowed his eyes. “You just had to outdo me, huh?”

Jade bit her lip, trying to stop her whole face from beaming. Namjoon brushed a loose curl behind her ear. “I didn’t know you could sing. I mean, I didn’t think you were a bad singer, I just—”

Jade shut him up with a kiss.

“Well, I never knew you could song-write, so there,” Jade whispered. “Plus, you really think you can send me on the best treasure hunt ever and not face any competition?”

“No,” Namjoon muttered. “That’s why I love you, though.”

“I love you too, you know,” Jade said, covering her reddened, burning cheeks with her hands. “I didn’t say it back when you asked me, but I need you to know I love you too.”

Namjoon’s smile widened, his eyes crinkling. He reached for Jade’s face, replacing her hands with his own, and kissed her back.

“Guys, you haven’t seen Yoongi, anywhere right?”

Jade could feel Namjoon playing her curls, as he always did when he was kissing her.

“Jade Thirlwall and Kim Namjoon.”

Jade broke apart, staring at Jesy and sighing. “We have not.”

“He’s probably sleeping, honestly,” Namjoon added.

Jesy groaned. “Ugh, that bastard abandoned me here. Whatever, get back to whatever you’re doing, I’ll go find him.”

***

Jimin could hear the band playing from outside the Great Hall, as he leaned against the wall, searching for any stragglers that may be drunk. It wasn’t the best way to spend the Yule Ball, but he was a prefect, damn it, and he’d do his duty.

Plus, it meant avoiding Yoongi, as he’d been doing for fourteen days and counting.

“Hey, Jimin.”

Jimin glanced to see a friendly Gryffindor prefect patrolling the halls as well. “Oh, hey, Jungkook.”

Jungkook smiled brightly, scanning the hallways.

“You know,” Jimin said. “You don’t actually have to patrol the hallways; you can go in and enjoy the ball.”

“I’m actually looking for someone,” Jungkook said. “He’s around my height, blonde, Hufflepuff sixth year…”

Jimin thought back to the students he’d seen entering the ballroom.

“He wanders a lot,” Jungkook added. “I’ve caught him roaming the Astronomy Tower at night.”

“I know who you’re talking about,” Jimin said immediately. “Carrying Divination and Astronomy school books, right?”

“Y-yes, how do you—?”

“I’ve caught him too,” Jimin said, chuckling. “I let him go, though, he seemed a little panicky. Sometimes detention doesn’t really work.”

“I let him go too,” Jungkook said in a strangely sad voice, his head hanging.

“I’ll keep an eye out for him,” Jimin said, and Jungkook nodded, leaving Jimin in his patrolling peace.

Jimin strayed into a lonely little hallway, gazing at the empty paintings, the subjects of which might’ve joined other paintings to celebrate the holidays.

Then he was shoved onto a nearby bench.

“Ow, what the—”

“Park Jimin, you sit down and you shut up, and you fucking listen to me.”

Jimin’s mouth clamped shut when he recognized Yoongi’s voice.

He looked up, Yoongi towering over him with his wand pointed at Jimin’s chest.

“If you try to run from me again, I swear to Merlin I’ll hit you with a Body Bind curse.”

Jimin nodded quickly, his eyes wide as Yoongi glowered down at him. He felt like he was being held hostage. He probably was.

“Why are you avoiding me?” Yoongi demanded.

“Is that Professor—”

Yoongi’s wand was now nearly poking Jimin’s throat, which silenced Jimin’s fake excuse.

Yoongi sighed, and lowered his wand. “You kissed me, you run away from me, leaving me bleeding alone, by the way, and then you avoid me every day since? Why?”

“Because it’s embarrassing!” Jimin blurted out. “I don’t want to be that guy, I told you!”

“What guy?” Yoongi spluttered. “What are you even saying? Am I embarrassing?”

“Of course not!” Jimin cried, leaping to his feet. “I wanted to kiss you!”

“Then why the bloody hell did you leave me!”

“Because I didn’t want you to cheat on your girlfriend!”

Yoongi looked so offended, so in shock, Jimin nearly staggered backwards.

“What…the _fuck_ … are you talking about?” Yoongi said through gritted teeth.

Jimin blinked rapidly. “Y-your girlfriend. I don’t wanna be that guy who breaks up a relationship.”

“Jimin, I don’t have a girlfriend!”

“B-but…J-Jesy…”

Yoongi let out something that sounded like a scream and a laugh in one. “Jesy? Are you insane?”

“Aren’t you dating Jesy?” Jimin stammered.

“What would make you think I was dating Jesy?” Yoongi demanded, looking horrified.

“You two always seemed so close, I guess…”

“Always?”

Jimin flushed. “It’s why… I don’t talk to you anymore…because…”

Yoongi’s face turned murderous. “You better finish that sentence, Jimin.”

“I loved you, okay!” Jimin exclaimed. “I’ve always had a massive crush on you… since first year, but then you got close with Jesy and I thought you were dating, I thought you were in love with her, so I stopped talking to you.”

“You stopped talking to me because you thought I had a girlfriend?”

“I thought I’d get over my crush if I got you to hate me,” Jimin admitted sullenly.

“What were you _thinking_?” Yoongi demanded, glaring at Jimin.

Jimin stared at his shoes, cringing at the old memories. “I was like thirteen, okay? I didn’t know how to process my own feelings! It seemed logical at the time. Then you started hating me and here we are.”

“I only hated you because you hated me!” Yoongi exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air.

“Well…I…”

“You’re saying if you weren’t such a disaster of a flirt, we could’ve been friends all these years? Maybe even more?”

“I don’t think ‘disaster’ is fair,” Jimin muttered. Then his head snapped up. “Wait what does ‘even more’ mean?”

Yoongi narrowed his eyes. “You really gonna make me spell it out?”

Jimin stared back, expectantly, completely oblivious to whatever was on Yoongi’s mind.

“You idiot,” Yoongi said, rolling his eyes. “I’ve been in love with you for five and a half years now.”

Jimin felt like he’d been hit with the Body Bind curse. “Well now I really feel stupid.”

Yoongi scoffed.

“In my defense,” Jimin added. “I didn’t think you’d ever like someone like me.”

“Did you not hear me say I’m in love with you?”

“What would you even be in love with?” Jimin said under his breath, collapsing onto the bench again.

“Jimin…”

Jimin looked up, seeing Yoongi on one knee.

“You don’t even know how beautiful you are to me.”

Jimin blushed. “Well in case I don’t…please tell me.”

That was the first time Jimin heard Yoongi actually laugh, naturally, with the prettiest smile he’d ever seen go with it.

Yoongi’s following words nearly brought Jimin to tears. Things Jimin never even realized he did, the way Jimin apparently woke up, the way he smiled, his flying…his passion.

“Are you satisfied?” Yoongi said, looking at Jimin with a soft smile.

“Maybe,” Jimin said, burying his face in his hands. “I didn’t know you paid attention to me like that.”

“You’re hard to miss.”

“So are you,” Jimin insisted. “Everything you said about me is what I love about you.”

“I don’t smile.”

“You do, actually,” Jimin said softly. “When you think everyone’s sleeping, I see you writing notes and you smile to yourself.”

Yoongi blushed. “That’s homework.”

“Sure it is,” Jimin laughed at how terrible of a liar he was. Yoongi got to his feet again, and sat down next to Jimin on the bench.

“Well, I can’t believe a prefect as perfect as you is skipping the ball.”

“I’m on patrol, actually,” Jimin said, raising a brow. “I was also sneaking around to avoid you.”

“Yeah, while I’ve been looking for you, you tosser,” Yoongi said. “And not just to hear you profess your undying love for me.”

“Pray tell, what else do you want from me, Min Yoongi?” Jimin said, lowering his voice.

Yoongi’s fingers started trailing up Jimin’s thigh, and Jimin gulped.

“I want those points back, that you took when I shoved you in the stands, and when you straddled me.”

“Nah, that was a just and fair punishment,” Jimin said, trying not to sound shaky in his resolve, as Yoongi’s fingers began tapping gently, painfully, on Jimin’s upper thigh.

“Maybe I can change your mind,” Yoongi whispered in Jimin’s ear.

Jimin gasped when Yoongi’s hands got a little too close, sending fire throughout his whole body. “Fine. One point to Slytherin.”

“One point?” Yoongi pulled back his hand, and Jimin whined at the loss. “Is that all I’m worth to you?”

Jimin smirked, a naughty line making its way from his mind to his mouth.

“Corrupting me isn’t gonna be that easy, Min Yoongi.”

Yoongi’s eyes darkened, and his lips pressed into a thin line. “You’re very lucky we’re in public right now.”

“Hmm, why’s that?”

Yoongi’s hand snaked up to Jimin’s throat, his thumb brushing Jimin’s bottom lip. Jimin tried to hide how much he loved Yoongi gently choking him, biting back a bratty grin.

“Don’t you prefects have access to certain…private bathrooms?”

“Maybe,” Jimin said. “But that might be an abuse of power.”

Yoongi groaned, his hand falling. “Must we stay at this infernal ball?”

“One dance,” Jimin suggested. “And then you can take me back to the common room, to the dorms. You know, where we sleep right next to each other?”

Yoongi smiled, softly this time. “Fine, one dance.”

“ _There_ you are!”

Jimin turned to see none other than Jesy marching up to Yoongi.

“Oh, uh, Jesy—”

“How dare you abandon me in that hellscape? I had to witness Jade and Namjoon kissing. Do you understand the agony?”

“I do,” Jimin said, waving at Jesy. Jesy looked him up and down, narrowing her eyes.

“It’s fine, Jesy,” Yoongi said quickly. He glanced at Jimin, and smiled again. “It’s actually…really fine now.”

Jesy didn’t seem convinced, but she desisted. “Is the century old conflict finally over?”

“He thought we were dating,” Yoongi said, making Jimin’s redden.

“Yoongi…” Jimin whined.

“He thought you and I were…” Jesy gestured at Yoongi and herself, before erupting into a fit of laughter.

“I would never,” Jesy gasped. The image of Jesy laughing to tears while Yoongi stood stone-faced made Jimin begin to giggle as well.

“Alright, Jess—"

“It’s an insult, frankly,” Jesy continued, between laughs. “How could you ever I think I’d date this—”

“Thank you Jesy,” Yoongi interrupted, clearing his throat.

Jimin grinned.

“Right,” Jesy chuckled, stepping away. “I’ll leave you to it. If you’re gonna, you know, just be subtle about it unlike those other two lovebirds in there.”

Yoongi rolled his eyes after Jesy’s departure. “She didn’t ruin me for you, I hope.”

Jimin laughed. “Well, I don’t think there’s a career for her in sales, but no, she didn’t ruin you for me. Nothing could.”

“There’s still time,” Yoongi muttered. “You haven’t seen me dance yet.”

Jimin wrapped his arm around Yoongi, steering him back to the Great Hall, with the brightest smile on his face as he leaned into Yoongi, who held him just as tightly back.

***

Jungkook finally decided to search the Castle grounds when he felt like he’d scanned every hallway near the Great Hall, the Astronomy Tower, and the dungeons by the Hufflepuff common room.

He finally found Taehyung, outside, on a blanket, staring at the stars.

“You were supposed to be my joke-date,” Jungkook said, making Taehyung jump in surprise.

“Jungkook, I…” Taehyung frowned. “Sorry, I just couldn’t.”

“It’s okay,” Jungkook said, though the abandonment hurt. “I kinda forced you into it.”

“No, I would’ve liked to go with you,” Taehyung said quietly. “I just…it’s a lot of people there. I panicked.”

Jungkook stepped closer, but kept his distance. “Does that happen a lot?”

Taehyung looked away. “I told you, I don’t really talk to people much, doesn’t that answer your question?”

Jungkook frowned, his heart aching for him. “I’m sorry.”

“Not your fault.”

“Well, I hope you know it’s not yours either,” Jungkook said firmly. “I don’t want you wallowing in guilt and pity, because you shouldn’t feel those things.”

Jungkook shifted his balance. “I can leave you alone, if you want…”

“You can stay,” Taehyung said in a distant voice, making Jungkook’s heart skip a beat.

“You know you’ve convinced me, about the stars,” Jungkook said, as he sat down on the fluffy blanket, sinking into the grass.

“About time someone fell for them,” Taehyung said.

“Yeah,” Jungkook said, gazing at Taehyung.

Jungkook hesitated. The memory was still fresh, and he didn’t want to wait long, in case Taehyung fully decided to move on from him.

“I need to tell you something.”

“Shoot,” Taehyung said.

“I didn’t mean it as a joke.”

Taehyung’s head turned slowly from the stars to Jungkook.

He had such beautiful eyes, Jungkook thought, before he pulled himself together.

“I wanted you to be my date,” Jungkook continued. “Like…my real date.”

Taehyung stared at him. “…Why?”

“Because you’re much more desirable than your stupid self-deprecating jokes would have you think,” Jungkook said in an exasperated voice. “You’re sweet, and thoughtful and passionate, and I felt like I had my first real conversation with someone at Hogwarts when I talked with you on that tower.”

“Um…”

“If you’re trying to come up with another joke about yourself, I don’t wanna hear it.”

Taehyung closed his mouth.

“I like you, Taehyung, I really do. As friends, or as anything else, I don’t care.”

Taehyung muttered something under his breath.

“What’s that?”

“I wanted you to be my date too.”

Jungkook paled, staring at the blonde boy who had him wrapped around his cold finger.

“I regretted what I said the moment I said it,” Taehyung added. “I thought you meant it as a joke date.”

“Why would I ask someone on a joke date?” Jungkook said with a humored sigh.

“You’re talking to someone who jokes about their loneliness, Jungkook. Yeah, I shouldn’t joke about that,” Taehyung added, before Jungkook could say it.

Jungkook smiled sheepishly. “It’s annoying when someone like you thinks less of themselves.”

“Stop it,” Taehyung groaned, but Jungkook could see the smile and blush he tried to hide.

“Well, I’m not lonely anymore,” Taehyung said with a pout. “I have the stars.”

Jungkook rolled his eyes.

“And I have you,” Taehyung added. “You’re still neck and neck with the stars though, I should warn you.”

Jungkook laughed. “I’d settle for a tie.”

Taehyung smiled, and leaned into Jungkook as they looked out into the night sky again.

“This is the last clear night, you know.”

“We’ll make it worthwhile,” Jungkook said. “Screw the ball.”

Taehyung curled up in Jungkook’s arms, eventually falling into his lap, as Jungkook absent-mindedly played with his blond locks, twirling his hair gently in Jungkook’s fingers until Taehyung’s eyes fluttered shut.

When Taehyung’s eyes opened again, Jungkook could see the stars reflected in his eyes, his whole world right there, in fact.

And when Taehyung smiled back up at him, Jungkook felt the happiest Christmas feeling wash over him, with the stars twinkling all around them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well, to those who actually read through it all, THANK YOU  
> this fic was a bitch to write, mostly panic written at 2am after doing nothing all day.  
> i tried to finish before christmas, then tried to finish on christmas, but alas, procrastination is more tempting than editing. not that this is thoroughly edited much, i maybe just glanced through before publishing, oops.  
> massive thanks to [dustingoffstars](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dustingoffstars/pseuds/dustingoffstars) for beta reading this, and for the late night borderline manic sessions of us reading each other's stories. we are much too invested in these tropes but who cares, love you and thank you for the fangirling and advice <333  
> i hope the rest of yall enjoy a mindless, soft christmas fluff as a late christmas gift!


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